Home Front by Admiral David Anderson
by Lord Pyro I
Summary: Everyone knows how Admiral Anderson stayed behind to defend Earth while Sheppard flew off to save the Galaxy. But how did he manage it? How was he able to survive in Reaper occupied territory, let alone fight back against the oppressors? For the first time we read the words of the man himself about his war on the Home Front. - Journal style - Anderson POV - ME3
1. Discovering the Reapers

Discovering the Reapers

 _First time I ever saw the Reapers? I took the SSV Normandy out for its first mission. Officially it was just a shakedown run to put the new ship and crew though their paces. Just another routine mission but as I've heard Sheppard say they always **start off** as routine._

 _Everyone on the ship knew something important was going on even before we first launched. None of them had been briefed on the true nature of our mission but I knew the rumor mill would already be working overtime. The Alliance, like most governments I've seen, would give the average ten year old a run for his pocket money when it comes to denying the obvious. Putting me on the ship was an obvious enough hint in itself but the Turian Spectre was pushing it even for them. Not that it was all that surprising that a Turian representative was joining us on our first voyage. This was the first ship the Alliance had co-designed with the Turian Hierarchy and they doubtless wanted to inspect the results of the joint venture. But sending a Spectre with us? They couldn't have made it more obvious there was more to this mission if they'd put a sign up in bright neon letters explaining the whole plan._

 _"Sir, what's this mission really about?" Asked Lieutenant Alenko just after we boarded._

 _"What do you mean?" I asked feigning ignorance._

 _"With all due respect sir if it's classified just let me know and I'll drop the subject. But please don't insult my intelligence. You're one of the most highly decorated captains in the Alliance fleet. Not the sort of person you assign to a shakedown run. And then there's the Spectre they've sent on board, I mean who are they trying to kid?"_

 _"Do you have a problem with Spectres Lieutenant?"_

 _"Well no, not specifically sir, I can certainly see the purpose they serve, it's just..." he trailed off._

 _"Just what?"_

 _"Spectres are above the law, literally. There's pretty much nothing they could do that would get them arrested. I can't speak about Spectres, Nihlus is actually the first one I've ever met, but I've had experience with someone who was given free reign before."_

 _"Bad experiences I take it?"_

 _"It was back during my biotic training, there was this drill sergeant and-" he paused for a moment._

 _"Actually sir I'd rather not go into the details right now. The point is if you let a man do anything he wants sooner or later you'll wind up creating a monster."_

 _"And you think the Spectres qualify?"_

 _"Couldn't say for sure, like I said never met one in person before today."_

 _I considered what he had said, particularly given I knew that my current XO was going to be pushed to become the next member. I brushed the thought aside, Alenko had a point but there was little to be gained by trying to confront the Council on it. I just had to hope that Sheppard would be able to walk that line._

 _"You're right that there is a classified element to our mission. And it's going to stay classified, so if anyone asks about it your orders are to assure them that everything's normal."_

 _"Shouldn't people be prepared if there's danger coming, sir?"_

 _"This mission isn't going to be dangerous, just secret, you have my word on that. And speaking of keeping things under wraps, go to the cockpit and keep an eye on our new pilot, Joker. If there's rumors going around you can bet he's the source."_

 _"Yes sir."_

 _As he left I thought to myself, if only he knew. Our actual mission was to recover a Prothean Beacon that was recently unearthed on Eden Prime, a human colony. The Prothean's were an advanced spacefairing race that existed 50,000 years ago before mysteriously disappearing. Their Beacon's were often found to contain information about their history, culture and technology which was still far in advance of our own. They were incredibly rare (this would be only the second ever found by humanity and the other races hadn't turned up many more either) and unsurprisingly incredibly valuable. Our orders were to pick up the artifact from the human colony and transport it to the Citadel for analysis._

 _In theory a straightforward mission although the possibility of pirates had to be considered. Eden Prime sat in an area of the galaxy referred to as the Attican Traverse. A border strip between the official Council territory and the region known as the Terminus Systems. The Terminus was filled with pirates, slavers and worse and raids into the Traverse were not unheard of._

 _That's why the Normandy had been selected for the mission. Not only was it a state of the art warship, one of the fastest in the fleet, but it also had the prototype stealth systems installed. This particular feature was unique to the Normandy, its secret weapon. Far as I understood it the idea was to store the ships emissions in internal heat sinks to allow us to move unnoticed. I'd been warned that under heavy assault pushing her too hard might cause her to burn up. Not a ship for the inexperienced then but I liked her all the more for it. I was sure that in the right hands she'd prove deadly._

 _In fact despite all my expectations I was pleased about the mission overall. The Normandy was an amazing ship by any standards and this mission made her mine, I was hardly going to complain about that. More than that I had a fantastic crew with me, drawn from some of the best the Alliance had to offer. It was a shame that we would soon be losing Sheppard but there was still plenty of talent here. If the mission went well I was thinking of recommending the Normandy be deployed in the Traverse long term. With her unique stealth capabilities at our disposal we could really do some good work in helping to stabilize the region._

 _Of course for that to work I would have to find someone to replace Sheppard as my XO, most likely Navigator Presley. The only other option was Lieutenant Alenko who I'd just spoken to. He was on board as a combat and biotics specialist but even after one conversation it was clear he could have leadership potential given time._

 _Presley was the most obvious candidate as he was the next in line. The only issue there was his attitude toward aliens might prove an issue if he walked in more elevated circles. But I'll say this for the man, he was never in any way hostile to other races but he also struggled to trust them due to his family's connection to the First Contact War. His issues with other species were deeply ingrained but he fought against them admirably and never allowed them to affect his work. I hoped one day he would win that fight but worried that I would have to promote Alenko instead._

 _My thoughts were interrupted when Nihlus walked in, evidently knocking is only a human custom._

 _"We should be reaching your colony world shortly. It's time we briefed Commander Sheppard on the true nature of this mission."_

 _I nodded and dialed up the bridge on our internal comms system._

 _"Joker, Status report."_

 _Jeff Moreau or 'Joker' as he still likes to be called was the pilot I had selected for this mission (well sort of anyway, I think he would've stolen the Normandy if I hadn't hired him)._

 _"Just cleared the Mass Relay Captain, stealth systems engaged, everything looks solid."_

 _"Good. Find a comm buoy and link us into the network. I want mission reports relayed back to Alliance brass before we reach Eden Prime."_

 _"Aye, aye Captain. Better brace yourself I think Nihlus is headed your way."_

 _"He's already here, Lieutenant," I replied while glancing back at the Turian standing just behind me, his cold eyes staring off into the distance. The fact that he acted as if he hadn't noticed the comment did nothing to alleviate the awkwardness of the moment._

 _"Tell Commander Sheppard to meet me in the comm room for a debriefing." I said ending the call. I glanced back again at Nihlus who still remained silent._

 _"I apologize for my helmsmen, he has a habit of making bad jokes. Go on ahead, I just want to finish writing this report before I join you."_

 _I spent some time working on it, well maybe more than I needed to. If Nihlus was willing to burst into my personal quarters just to deliver a message he could stand to learn a little patience. Still he seemed practical and professional enough from what I'd seen, working with him didn't seem as impossible as when I'd first been informed he'd be joining us._

 _When I finally did arrive we brought Sheppard up to speed on everything he needed to know about the Beacon. We also explained that he'd been nominated to join the Spectres and that Nihlus was on this mission as part of a final evaluation process. If he was successful it would be a huge achievement for both the Alliance and Humanity. As we discussed it I couldn't help thinking back to my own evaluation process with Saren and how badly it had gone wrong. Suddenly we were interrupted by an emergency transmission from the surface. When we saw the footage, the tranquil Eden I had once visited was already gone. At first it was all confused, we saw gunfire, explosions but no sign of an enemy. An officer showed his face and begged for evacuation. Then the footage panned round to look at the aggressors ship._

 _I felt fear from the first moment I saw it. The ship was gigantic, bigger than any I'd ever seen. Pitch black with tendrils that hung down from the main body but in the video they looked more like the fingers of some enormous hand. A black claw reaching down towards the paradise below. I didn't need to be told that our little frigate was no match for that monster. Our best bet was to grab what it was after (the Beacon obviously) and run with it, hoping it would give up on the colony once its objective was lost to it. That was my first encounter with a Reaper and my instinct had been to flee._

 _On arrival we quickly learned that on the colony was swarming with Geth units. Presumably brought there by the ship we'd seen but it was a shock to see them at all. The Geth are a machine race with a violent yet tragic history. Originally created by a race called the Quarians, they had been designed to act as servants and been given no more intelligence than they needed to perform their assigned tasks. They were no more slaves than one might describe a computer as a slave it was argued._

 _But they had the ability to share processing power and become smarter by doing so. As more and more Geth were constructed they grew ever smarter but the extent of this effect wasn't realized until one day a Geth asked its Quarian overseer 'Does this unit have a soul?'. The Quarians, fearing a Geth uprising, decided to act preemptively and the rest as they say is history. The resulting war ultimately drove the Quarians off their homeworld and beyond the Perseus Veil, behind which the Geth remained in hiding until that day on Eden Prime._

 _I sent Sheppard, Nihlus, Alenko and a young officer named Jenkins down to the surface to recover the Beacon. As they fought their way through the madness below we were forced to sit above, powerless. All of our attention was on the enemy ship, our scans had confirmed what I had known from the moment I saw it. If this thing saw through our stealth systems we'd be dead before we even realized it. I was on the bridge while all of this happened, taking command, keeping everyone's fears in check._

 _In the privacy of my own head I tried to rationalize my fears. I remembered being terrified of the Turians when I saw them for the first time, fighting in the First Contact War. The first aliens anyone had ever seen and they looked like spiky monsters. I tried to tell myself that fearing this new unknown enemy was no different but everything we'd seen about this enemy so far suggested that this threat was on a whole new level._

 _And what happened on the ground didn't do anything to help alleviate my concerns. That mission is unlikely to go down in history as one of the Alliance's great success stories though I must say that was no fault of those that undertook it. Nonetheless half the team we sent down there was killed (Nihlus and Jenkins), the Prothean Beacon was destroyed and Sheppard rendered unconscious._

 _Jenkins had been killed by the Geth but Nihlus on the other hand was killed by one of his own, another Turian Spectre by the name of Saren Arterius. The same man that had cost me my chance at becoming a Spectre and who hated all of humanity. Evidently that hatred had festered greatly to make him mad enough to attack a human colony (there was never any doubt that he was the one calling the shots there. Well, not until after we learned more about the Reapers and indoctrination in any case)._

 _The Commander was knocked out when the Beacon was accidentally triggered and he interfaced with it. Before he'd even woken up some were suggesting the Beacon had tried to communicate with him in some fashion. And then the first thing he talked about when he woke up were visions of death and destruction, of organic lifeforms being slaughtered by machines. He tried to brush it off as a dream but I could tell he knew there was more to it then that._

 _I wasn't quite sure how I was going to explain that last part in my report but Sheppard wasn't the only one. I had some very bad premonitions about what was coming too._


	2. Log 1

Log 1

Date: 29TH SEPT 2186

Location: ALLIANCE HDD COMMAND CENTER, VANCOUVER, CANADA

I've never really been one for diary entries or writing books (hell you should see the state of my paperwork) but ever since I got roped into that biography deal I've seen how it can be useful to get your thoughts down on paper (or rather a data pad). I'm hoping I'll spot something by doing this, some detail about this whole thing that I overlooked in the past. Because if I don't find something we might all be dead soon.

Huh, that probably comes off as a little dramatic, particularly given my comfortable surroundings. I'm currently sitting in my private quarters in the main command center of the Alliance HDD (Homeworld Defense Division). The comfortable bed in the corner and steaming mug of coffee on the desk don't exactly suggest a man preparing for the coming apocalypse. Probably best if I start from the beginning then, so here's the headline:we have an enemy. By we I mean everybody, every man, woman and child from every sentient species still living as I write these words. If the enemy hasn't been stopped by the time you read this, then you're their enemy as well and they are coming for you. The only name we have for them is Reapers, literally a race that only kills and harvests. They harvest entire civilizations; destroying them so completely that the slate is wiped clean, the memory of their existence is lost forever. Then they disappear again and wait for the next crop, the next civilization to destroy. A cycle of slaughter that has played out thousands of times across millions of years. I first saw one of their kind on Eden Prime and the memory still haunts me.

As you read these words you might believe that the Reapers are fictional as so many have done in the past. Your government may have told you that they don't exist but they're probably lying. You might think you've never encountered anything to do with them in your life but you're probably wrong. At the time this is being written almost every sentient race in the galaxy is using technology based on things built by the Reapers. Things like the Mass Relays, massively powerful Mass Effect generators capable of flinging ships clear across the galaxy. The Reapers created a vast network of Relays to connect the whole galaxy together and then left them for us to find. They also left us the Citadel, a massive, virtually indestructible space station that we took as the center of government for the galaxy. I'm describing these things in detail so that anyone who reads this in the future will recognize what I'm talking about. If you're part of a spacefaring race, you've almost certainly made use of both, as every civilization before mine has done in the past.

At this point you might well ask why the Reapers do this. Why help us build ourselves up only to tear us down again when the time is right? Why destroy one civilization after another in an endless cycle? What is the point of the Harvest? What to they gain from this slaughter? To those questions I don't have any answer. In fact I suspect it's something I may never know. But I do understand the strategy involved if nothing else. We weren't left these gifts to help us but to make ourselves predictable, to allow the Reapers to control our development. We have advanced into space travel using their technology but barely understand how it works. We have become so dependent on it that we became blind to the threat until it was too late. The Reapers do not hand out gifts, only traps.

I've urged the Citadel Council to investigate the possibility that the disturbing claims made by Commander Sheppard and several others about the Reapers are correct. I've campaigned using every resource at my disposal. Tried to convince them that even just a discrete investigation to root out the remote possibility that this threat is real, was in our best interests. When that failed, I tried to get permission to examine the technology they left behind (I didn't put it that way to them though). The Relays are simple to use but have thus far proven impossible to examine properly. The hull of each Relay is made from an unidentified yet incredibly durable material. Able to resist both scans and weapons fire with ease. Worse yet there is a fear that being too aggressive might 'break' a Relay in someway that couldn't be repaired, costing us a vital link between star systems. With no profit to be found in examining the Relays, no one is prepared to even try.

As for the Citadel itself? We wouldn't even be able to use such a complicated example of alien technology if not for the fact it conveniently comes with its own specially made support staff that we now call the 'Keepers'. A quiet curious race that are only found to live aboard the Citadel, they maintain the station and run its basic functions for us. Part organic, part machine they were discovered on-board the station when the Asari first discovered it and immediately started helping them to use the Citadel without question and without being asked (in fact we have never been able to communicate with them directly. They simply anticipate our needs).

The Keepers can't be removed from the station without killing them. If they are killed they are instantly replaced but no one knows how or where the replacement comes from. If you try to interfere with a Keeper it self destructs. They are the only ones that know how the Citadel really works and we are completely dependent on them to run our center of galactic government. Even as I write these words now, I realize just how crazy the situation must sound to anyone who has not seen it for themselves but most people here have simply learned to accept it. They crawl around the station with impunity and we treat them as invisible. Just one more example of the insidious way the Reapers' influence spreads through our lives. It's everywhere and yet seemingly leaves no trace of real evidence for us to look at. The only remaining lead I have is the vision Sheppard received from a Prothean Beacon.

That reminds me, I should go down to the labs in the morning and speak with the techs again, I've been chasing them to find some evidence that the Beacon was responsible for Shepard's vision. I'm not in any doubt of that myself but what I need is proof that I can take to the Council. That's what I'm looking for when writing this thing really, some clue as to where I can find the evidence that I need to open everyone's eyes.

The Reapers are coming and yet the Council, the Alliance and damn near everyone else just sits on their hands pretending it's not happening. The Council is the worst; they've dismissed the threat from day one, discrediting anyone who tries to speak out, just so they don't have to face the truth. I don't know how much time we have left but I'm sure it isn't long. I don't sleep easy most nights, I lie awake in bed worrying that I am failing in my task, that millions will suffer because of it.

But how do I know that this threat is real? What makes me different to the billions of sheep that accept the Council's explanations? The simplest reason is that I've seen a Reaper in person and that memory continues to terrify me. But in truth that doesn't make me so different from the rest of the galaxy. It wasn't long after that encounter that the Reaper in question, Sovereign launched an attack on the Citadel. Supported by its Geth allies and the rogue Spectre agent Saren it almost succeeded in its objective: unlocking a secret Mass Relay on the Citadel to allow the entire Reaper fleet to instantly transport themselves here (A Relay I might add, that we had no idea even existed until that moment. So you can probably see my point about the disadvantages of relying on tech you don't understand).

That day we saw what even a single Reaper is capable of. We threw a fleet of ships at it and still it endured, burning everything in sight. As unlikely as it sounds (for a battle so huge) we only won that day because of the actions of one man; Commander Sheppard. To achieve its objective Sovereign was reliant on Saren to operate the controls on the Citadel. When Saren was killed it was left with no choice but to take direct control of his corpse via his implants and fight a final, desperate battle against the Commander for control of the station. This proved to be a catastrophic mistake, the battle on the ground causing a feedback loop that disabled the Reaper and enabled us to destroy it. The Relay on the Citadel remained locked and the Reapers were left to make the vast journey back to our galaxy using only their conventional means of propulsion.

Naturally everyone of importance in the galaxy saw or heard about that event. The extranet was quickly flooded with reports of the Commander's heroism. At least for the first few weeks he was heralded as the savior of the Citadel. But as Sheppard and I tried to translate that rhetoric into funding to face the threat the politicians quickly lost interest. It wasn't even the money so much as the fear, the mass panic that would be caused by admitting to the existence of a galactic threat. So they quietly shelved the idea, convincing themselves that the Geth and Saren had been responsible and that Sovereign itself was no more than a Geth flagship (though if the Geth had been capable of building ships like that they would have destroyed us easily).

After that successful mission Sheppard was sent off to wipe out the remaining Geth on our side of the Perseus Veil. It was seen as a cleanup task, a simple means of getting the Commander out of the way while they slowly destroyed his reputation. Six months into the mission the Normandy was attacked by a Collector vessel (The Collectors are an isolated, non council race which are incredibly secretive about virtually every aspect of their species). The ship was destroyed and its captain presumed K.I.A. Many politicians assumed that was the end of that until he showed up two years later alongside Cerberus, claiming that they had saved him. He worked with them as long as he could, using their resources to lead a campaign against the Collectors (who he believed to be servants of the Reapers ). Unable to help (for complicated reasons) the rest of us watched from the sidelines hoping that something would bring him back into the fold.

Unfortunately when that happened it was because of a tragedy. According to Commander Sheppard the Reapers were on the brink of invading the Batarian Bahak system. In an act of desperation the system's Mass Relay was destroyed to prevent the Reapers from jumping to the next system and beginning the invasion in earnest. But the Relay explosion released enough energy to devastate the entire system (not that anyone living there would have survived for long once the Reapers arrived en masse). Needless to say the collateral damage was catastrophic and the Batarians were furious.

Afterwards Sheppard did everything right. After dropping off most of his crew he promptly turned himself in so that he could face the consequences of his actions. There was a trial of sorts and he ended up in jail (of sorts), all in the name of appeasing the Batarians. We hoped that might be enough to avoid a war but it looks like we were wrong. We've recently received reports of massive fleet movements from Batarian space all flooding into Council and Alliance territory. We've received no official declaration of war but neither do we really expect to. All our analysts are telling us that the Batarians wouldn't issue any official declarations until after the first wave of attacks. They prefer hit and run style attacks, relying on dirty tricks and terror tactics to win their wars. If they follow their usual strategy then they'll send agents to plant bombs in our colonies or assassinate key figures in government. So it looks like for all intents and purposes we are at war now. Damn, I knew all too well how angry they were but I thought we were making progress in our negotiations. Shows how little I understand Batarians I guess. Now every ship they have is being sent out without warning.

And while we prepare to fight the entire Batarian Hegemony the Reapers are still on their way. Right now I almost wish they'd arrive. Once they do show up it won't take long for everyone to see we have to fight together if we want to have a hope of surviving. That said I often fear that the longer it takes for us to unite the worse our chances will be. That's why I'm sitting here working on this, if I can find some evidence of the Reapers existence maybe we can convince the Batarians that we need to be working together now not fighting one another. It's an act of desperation, the Batarians have hated Humanity ever since we arrived on the galactic stage and I question if anything I can say would convince them to call off this attack. But we will all have to stand side-by-side when the Reapers finally do get here or we will all fall separately. Assuming we haven't all killed each other by then in this pointless goddamn war.

I'm going to stop writing for now, I've rambled on long enough and I'm being called by the defense committee anyway. Apparently there's some issue at Arcturus Station, the center of the Alliance parliament. Not sure what could be so damn important its worth calling me back at this late hour unless…

Oh god no, I hope I'm wrong.


	3. Log 2

Log 2

Date: 30TH SEPT 2186

Location: VANCOUVER, CANADA

Today, the worst has happened. All my claims of 'knowing the truth' about the threat, now seem hollow and empty. The real truth is that I knew nothing. That I scarcely comprehended the scale of what was coming for us. For the last three years, I endured sleepless night after sleepless night, endlessly worrying away at one scheme or another. Schemes that I hoped might offer us some hope, some chance when the monsters finally arrived. And it was all wasted, all completely pointless. My preparations were woefully inadequate but had I known what was coming the terror might have driven me insane. So maybe it was better that way, to have hope born of ignorance. Believing that we still had more time left. Believing that there might be some way for us to hold the line in this conflict. But there was no war when they came for us, only slaughter, only the Harvest.

I'll try to pick up from where I left off. After I stopped writing I went to see the defense committee, to investigate the alert that had been raised regarding Arcturus Station. When I got there the room was filled with a crowd of anxious young officers. They were keeping busy but I could sense the panic in the room. For a while they were so busy that my arrival went unnoticed until eventually I managed to grab a junior officer going past and get her to tell me what was going on. She told me that Arcturus Station had just gone dark, no transmissions, no warning it just fell silent. We had just lost all contact with the single most important station Humanity had ever built, the site of the Alliance Parliament.

I went cold right then. The officer was still speaking to me, trying to reassure me that this was probably just some technical glitch but all I really remember is that cold feeling you get in the pit of your stomach sometimes. The raw fear of what's coming next. I spent the next twenty minutes hovering on the sidelines as junior officers rushed around. The screens stayed stubbornly blank and I grew anxious, feeling the situation slipping out of our hands. In my head I said the same word over and over again 'Reapers'. I felt quite sure they were responsible but what to do about it? Acting quickly I pulled an officer off the nearest work station and opened a comm link to someone I was confident would keep his head in a crisis, Admiral Hackett.

I had known the Admiral for a long time (I actually served under him directly a couple of times) and his known him by reputation even longer. Hackett had commanded the fifth fleet for as long as almost anybody could remember and that experience coupled with his straight forward, no nonsense approach had won him the respect of our military, our politicians and even with many of our allies. I also considered him a trusted ally even if I wasn't sure if he believed as strongly in the Reaper threat as myself and Sheppard. Besides his fleet was closest to the station so hopefully he could provide some answers.

"What's going on Admiral? I assume it's not a 'technical glitch'," I commented as I approached.

"I'm afraid not. We're letting that story run on the Extranet for the time being but in truth this was sabotage."

"Sabotage? Who was responsible?"

"I'm just waiting to find that out now," he replied.

"I've already sent a team over to board the station but so we only have their initial reports to go on."

"What do they say?"

"About thirty minutes ago a team of Alliance personnel began a campaign of aggressive sabotage against the station. They attacked openly and without any fear of being identified or captured. My team is rounding them up but the station is a mess. Every major system has suffered damage. The attack was coordinated and recklessly destructive, we suspect the Batarians may have had a hand in this."

I was less convinced and waited impatiently for the team on Arcturus to check back in. When they finally did so their report only served to confirm my fears.

"They've all gone crazy Admiral, we found them babbling like madmen. No clue as to why they did this but we're testing them for hallucinogens, hopefully that might explain how they were affected."

I shook my head at his words; there was a far more plausible explanation than drugs. I demanded the names of those involved and quickly searched for their service records. After looking at about five of them, a pattern soon emerged. I could see what was going on and it wasn't the work of Batarians.

"Admiral, it looks like everyone on that list was captured and later rescued from the Geth incursions three years ago.

"All of them? That can't be a coincidence. The Geth might've tried to turn them into sleeper agents but why strike now, the Geth hadn't been active in almost a year.

"We both know that those Geth were servants of the Reapers so it's possible that they indoctrinated their prisoners. Which means if they've been activated now, it can only mean one thing. The Reapers are on their way."

"Hackett gave me a long hard look, his face unreadable.

"Are you certain Admiral? If we act on this and turn out to be wrong, we could both end up losing our careers."

Leaving no one left in the Alliance who even slightly believed that the Reapers are real, I realized. A wrong call here could leave Earth oblivious to the threat. But how much worse would it be if it was the Reapers and we did nothing?

"They're coming," I stated firmly, not leaving any room for doubt in my voice. "Do whatever you have to."

So while some were already trying to write this off as a stupid attempt to embarrass the Alliance, Hackett attempted to mobilize the fleets to fight. It took hours but for once we were actually getting somewhere. Several of the Batarian ships had finally been stopped and questioned and their stories added weight to our theory. They claimed that Khar'shan, the Batarian home world had been attacked by an overwhelming enemy and far from an assault, the incoming ships were filled with fleeing refugees or retreating troops. The Batarian Hegemony had already fallen under Reaper control and it was clear their next target would be the Alliance.

We weren't going to go quietly though, particularly not with Admiral Hackett leading the defense. He had ordered the Sixth and Seventh fleets to take position near Eden Prime. Their orders were to slow the enemy advance for as long as possible to give the Second, Third and Fifth fleets at Arcturus a chance to prepare a proper defense. Then they'd fall back to Arcturus to join the rest of our forces and any reinforcements the Council could send us. We figured with so many ships we'd be able to hold off their initial invasion force. After that we could decide how best to link up with the other Council races long term and take the fight to the Reapers. For all that I'd heard about the Reapers' strength I still figured we had a shot. In past cycles they had won by hitting the Citadel first and crippling any chance of a coordinated defense. Thanks to Commander Sheppard we had been spared that catastrophe and I had to believe that it would make a difference.

Still there were some issues we had to face first, the main one being the Earth Defense Committee. Despite the fact that we planned to have our fleets hold the line at Arcturus we still wanted to have our forces on the ground ready in case they broke through. Unfortunately the authority to give that order rested with the committee and they had a habit of dragging their heels over every issue. We couldn't afford that in this situation so rather than get bogged down in endless arguments we settled on a small piece of theater for their benefit. Something simple that would give them a sense of urgency on this issue. It ran something like this:

"How bad is it?" I asked to set the tone while the committee listened in quietly.

"Bad." Replied Hackett gravely. "We just lost contact with two of our deep space outposts. There's something massive on long range scanners."

A complete lie of course. Our scanners didn't have the range to detect ships that hadn't jumped into that star cluster yet but from everything we'd been told from the Batarians it wouldn't be long before we could.

"Is this what Sheppard warned us about?" I asked. We had agreed that I should be passive in this exchange so that my own personal bias (in that I believed in the Reapers) wouldn't be brought up.

"I'd stake my life on it."

"How long do we have?"

"Not long. I've sent word. The fleets are mobilizing."

"God help us all."

Full credit to Hackett for the script, if there was ever such a thing as an 'expert' in leadership it would be him. Every bit of it was carefully calculated to get the result we needed. The added tension, the clear statement of facts to discourage argument, even the fact that the committee were set up to 'overhear' the discussion instead of being presented a case to mull over for hours. In the end they bought it completely and immediately ordered us to begin mobilizing ground troops. It would take hours for them to be fully ready but we hoped our fleets could buy us sufficient time.

Soon the only possible preparation left was get our main Reaper expert here pronto. Given the fear that was enveloping us all it didn't take much convincing to get the top brass to order Sheppard's release and have him brought here. I set off to meet him halfway, hoping to brief him on the situation before he faced the full committee.

When I caught up with him he was being escorted by Lieutenant Vega, a soldier I'd assigned to guard Sheppard during his trial and subsequent house arrest (call me paranoid but I wanted someone to have his back). We also ran into Lieutenant Commander Williams who had just come from the committee herself. She and the Commander are old friends but I think things have been awkward ever since he worked for Cerberus. In any case we had to leave the Lieutenants behind as we headed into the committee chamber.

Things had gotten much worse by the time we'd returned. The crowd had been cleared away, sent on assignments I think just to keep them busy. Hackett's comm link was dead too, so it was just me and Sheppard standing in front of the defense committee with a handful of guards on the sidelines. It was strange to see the vast room so empty. The committee were sat in a row behind a huge desk, like judges at court. Behind them the massive windows let the light of the new day (I hadn't even noticed it getting so late, or should I say early) into the room.

Then they dropped the bombshell that we'd actually lost contact with everything beyond our own solar system. In the time it had taken me to fetch Sheppard we had gone from having a fighting chance, to not knowing if our fleets were even still out there. Most likely I assumed that a force of Reapers had somehow managed to avoid the battle and were now somewhere nearby, jamming our communications. The other possibility, that they had smashed their way through our fleet already; it didn't even bare thinking about.

Either way it looked like we would need to fight soon ourselves. Not that the Defense Committee was likely to be much help .From the fear clearly evident on all of their faces it was plain to see they were expecting us to tell them how to survive all this. In fact within minutes they asked Sheppard exactly that question. I'm not exactly sure what they were expecting, the Commander wasn't a miracle worker after all. All he could do was attempt to make them understand the nature of the threat, that we could fight or we would die.

It made little difference in any case. Within moments we were interrupted, a young officer announcing we'd lost contact with our Luna base. The idea that they could have gotten so close so quickly seemed absurd but in truth it was only the tip of the iceberg. We were told that someone had a visual on the Reapers in London. When the feed came up all we could see was smoke and flames, a single soldier shouting into the camera before the connection was lost. Then we saw the news feeds as Reapers began to descend on the cities one by one.

It was so surreal, while we held a meeting to figure out how to stop the Reapers they were occupying the Earth as a conquered territory. My first instinct was to try and get the committee to safety, to retreat back to… where? That was my second reaction, nowhere was safe. The Reapers owned our skies, could drop on us at any time, could burn through buildings like a hot knife through butter. I swear to god that was my last thought before that shot came straight through the window, wiping out the committee and sending us flying.

Everyone in the room had been knocked down or killed, I was on my feet quickly though and rushed to get Shepard moving. He was dazed from the impact or something I think, but I managed to get him to focus on getting out of there the only way we could. We rushed out of the broken windows and fled over the rooftops. From up there we could see most of the city and clear across Vancouver. Several Reapers had landed nearby, towering over us despite our being on the roof of a skyscraper. Their spider like legs supporting their main body so they could pick targets at their leisure. Occasionally one of these giants shifted its position crushing buildings and knocking over tower blocks with their sheer size. Bright bursts of red light seemed to emerge from the clouds to burn swathes through the city, the only visible sign of the orbital bombardment.

I tried to signal the Normandy, had no success there but I managed to get through to Lieutenant Commander Williams. She and Vega would head for the Normandy while we hurried over the rooftops to reach the spaceport so they could pick us up. It wasn't likely to be easy for either group though our vantage point did let us see how bad the situation really was. In the sky I saw what seemed like thousands of tiny ships all flying around chaotically. Most were ours, fighters and gunships trying to fight the Reapers (hopeless as it was, those things were a thousand times their size) and shuttles and skycars attempting to flee the city. The only ship really making a fight of it was a single dreadnought still holding position over the city. Dreadnought class vessels are the strongest ships in our fleet (we only have nine in total) but I knew it wouldn't be long before even that ship was forced to retreat.

The Reapers had their own stuff in the air too. Not just giant Reapers but also thousands of smaller drones, sent out to shoot down as many ships as possible. I was worried that, exposed as we were, we might might make an easy target for them until I realized that we had more than enough to worry about on the ground. The Husks were already here in force, overrunning the streets and swarming up the sides of the building towards us. We managed to deal with the first wave easily enough but I decided we should head into one of the ruined buildings to avoid attracting even more attention.

Oh yes the Husks, I should explain these things in case this ends up as a message to the next cycle. The Husks are humans, or rather were humans that the Reapers have converted by implanting cybernetics to control them. Every trace of humanity is stripped from them, leaving behind a rotting corpse, riddled with metal implants. In the Reaper army Husks act as mindless killing machines, that throw themselves at the enemy in vast numbers to overwhelm them. The way they charge at you, unarmed and crazed like a rabid animal can be terrifying to the average soldier. I don't understand what the Reapers do to them but I'm sure there's a lot of pain involved. Sometimes it almost seems like the Husks can still feel what was done to them, that the Reapers are weaponizing that tortured agony to turn people into snarling beasts, bent on revenge.

I could hear the crowds of people in the streets below us, I even caught sight of them once or twice. The bombardment had flushed a group of survivors out into the open. Terrified of being crushed by the falling buildings they tried to flee the city but it was hopeless. When I saw them the street was so crowded that the people couldn't even move. Crammed in like sardines, there was nothing they could do when the enemy closed in from all sides. The screams grew louder below us but I forced myself to ignore it. I was too far away to help them and it was hard enough trying to make our way over the rubble as it was. If we tried to rush our only reward would be a very long fall (a stupid way to get ourselves killed given the circumstances).

Still it wasn't easy to hear unarmed civilians being slaughtered below us. Particularly when we, the trained soldiers faced no more resistance than a few Husks. To distract myself I tried talking to Sheppard, knowing that I needed to anyway; so that he would be ready for what I had planned. Someone had to get off-world and get a message to the Council to let them know what happened here and request reinforcements to help retake earth. They'd stalled and dragged their heels and basically been a pain in the ass from day one but if we wanted to stand any chance at all we needed them now. I told the Commander all this because I'd already made up my mind, Shepard didn't know it yet but I was going to stay on earth. One of us clearly had to go, that much was obvious. But I refused to leave these people here to die. Besides I owed the Reapers some payback.

We kept an eye out for survivors, as unlikely as it was, hoping that we might be able to save someone from this nightmare. I didn't see anyone but I think Shepard may have come across a kid (I assume it was a child from the way Sheppard spoke to him) that I hadn't spotted. He spoke with them briefly while I struggled to get the next set of doors open but I could only make out Shepard's half of the conversation. In the end it sounded like the kid ran off rather than accept our help. I closed my eyes and said a small prayer for whoever it was, not because I believed but because there was nothing else I could do.

Eventually we made it out of the wreckage and out into the open air again with the harbor and the space port now clearly in view. Unfortunately before we had gone more than a few steps we saw the Reapers target the dreadnought that was still fighting above the city. As it exploded the shock wave was so huge it hit us from miles away and caused the entire platform we were standing on to collapse. We slid down the side of the building, down towards the docks themselves and found ourselves surrounded by water and debris. A maze of scrap metal made from the remnants of the ships shot out of the sky.

By this stage I'd lost all contact with the Normandy (Williams and Vega had got there before the line went dead) and I needed to get it here so I could send Shepard to get help. That's when we finally came across some other Alliance soldiers. They'd come from a gunship that had crashed in the harbor, told us it still had a radio on-board that could reach the Normandy. We managed to get our hands on it but we were ambushed by these creatures. Never seen anything like them before. They seemed to be like the husks, an altered race designed to serve the Reapers but they were so distorted I couldn't make out which species they'd used. These things certainly did have guns though; we were hard pressed to hold out until the Normandy arrived.

I told Shepard to go on without me then, left him standing on the ramp up to the ship. Just as expected he hadn't wanted to leave me behind but they had no choice, they were lucky the Reaper didn't blow them out of the sky as it was. I watched them disappear into the clouds then hurried back to the survivors from the gunship. To be honest I'd been so focused on getting Shepard out of there I hadn't really thought much about what I was going to do on the ground. Hadn't had much time to think really, when I got back to the survivors we were all just reeling from shock I guess. As I stopped to try and make plans the full enormity of the situation hit me. Earth was an occupied territory. The human home world, fallen in a matter of hours to the Reaper arrival.


	4. Log 3

Log 3

Date: 30TH SEPT 2186

Location: VANCOUVER, CANADA

Just to clarify, I hadn't intended to end that last entry there but I was interrupted before I got a chance to write any more. I'm going to do my best to keep this record up to date but you'll have to bare with me. This war leaves little downtime and frankly, though I've managed to reach a secure location for the moment I'm not sure how long it will stay that way.

So I left things just after Shepard departed in the Normandy to get help from the Council. I was left on my own to trudge back to the soldiers from the downed gunship we'd come across earlier. I grabbed what gear I could, including the radio and made my way back to them. One of them was in pretty bad shape from what I could see; he had a broken arm, a twisted ankle and several cracked ribs, all injuries from the crash I think. I have basic medical training so I patched him up as best I could, tearing apart the uniform of a fallen soldier just to make a sling for his arm.

Once that was done we hunkered down and I turned the radio back on, trying to get a sense of what was going on. With the whole city in chaos we desperately needed to contact someone in authority and find out where our military forces were rallying. At first all I got on the radio was static but eventually I managed to get through to a General Coburg who was attempting to establish a defensible fallback position in some sort of underground shelter near the center of town. Once he knew who we were he gave us directions to the base. Apparently it was our best bet, being one of the few areas in the city deep enough underground to be safe from aerial bombardment.

He also let me know about a group of civilians hiding out in the police station, it wasn't too far out of our way so he figured we could extract them. "Oh and grab any police officers and weapons that happen to still be there as well" was the last word we got out of him before he abandoned the comm to go deal with something else. I wondered briefly what his last slave had died of but there little sense in arguing, besides he was already gone.

So the three of us set off, one of which was injured and with just two pistols left between us. Not much of a rescue team by usual standards but there was nothing else for it but to get on with the job at hand. I helped the injured soldier get to his feet and asked for their names.

"It's Hetford sir, Corporal Hetford. My injured colleague over there is Private Daniels."

We trudged onwards, back inland away from the harbor. It was quieter here now that the Normandy had cleared the local area of enemies but back in the heart of the city the battle was clearly still in full flow. As we started to make our way towards the station I took my first proper look at my new companions. At first glance they looked very much alike, both dark-haired and dressed in Alliance regulation combat gear but while I'd guess Daniels was still in his early twenties the years showed much more heavily on Hetford's face (I couldn't help wondering why he was still only a Corporal really). To distract them from the horror I tried to get them talking.

"So you got any family Corporal?"

"Some. Got a girl waiting for me back on the Citadel. Parents retired to live on Elysium so I haven't heard from them in a while but at least-"

"At least they're safe for now," I finished for him quickly though I knew the Reapers would reach the Skyllian Verge quickly enough.

"What about you, Daniels was it? Where are your folks right now?"

"They were both in the Alliance too but Dad died years ago, back during the Blitz."

"I'm sorry to hear that," I said quickly. The Skyllian Blitz had occurred about ten years ago when a group of pirates and slavers funded by the Batarians had attacked Elysium. We learned a sharp lesson that day that our colonization efforts weren't appreciated by everyone. They pushed back against our expansion hard but the defenders on the ground (including Sheppard who made a name for himself that day) managed to hold out until the fleet could arrive.

"What post is your mother assigned to?"

"She's on the SSV Madrid, fifth fleet."

Hackett's fleet in other words, another source of worry if less so. One thing I can say about Hackett is that he's a tough SOB even by military standards. He was out of contact but I wasn't prepared to count him out of this war yet.

"Actually I also have a brother in-"

"Quiet now Private," I warned as we passed into the shadow of the buildings, losing the clear lines of sight we'd enjoyed nearer the open water. He seemed confused by this warning at first, afterall everything still seemed calm enough around us. Thing about combat is, even when everything seems to be going to hell, in a lot of the world nothing is happening at all. It looked like the invaders hadn't deployed ground troops in this area yet but it would be stupid to risk falling into an ambush.

Myself and Hetford were on high alert as we crept through the abandoned streets but before long Daniels was approaching panic, unnerved by the lack of people and the evident destruction all around us. It should have been a busy area but it was clear everyone had fled when the Reapers first arrived. The burnt out skycars and smashed shop windows a testament to the "orderly" evacuation. Humans had many great qualities but tended to turn on itself in a crisis, doing the Reapers work for them. Maybe it's our diversity devolving into total chaos when we panic, I mused. At any rate I was just glad no one had been trampled here, Daniels seemed anxious enough without seeing a body.

Then we got the worst thing that could've happened at that point, the Reaper started making this strange noise like a fog horn. It was so loud it set my teeth on edge but it was worse on Daniels, he started shouting in alarm every time the horn blared out. Someone (or something) was going to hear him so I admit I put him in a chokehold until he passed out. Hetford helped me carry him and we started to make more progress.

When I looked up I realized we must be close to the station; no more than a couple of streets away at most. I had walked through this area a few times in the past but I didn't recognize it any more. I could read the street name clearly enough but the smashed up buildings and ruins? It was like nothing I could identify with. Worse yet the way was blocked too, a pile up of skycars blocked the road, and several had scorch marks from the weapons fire that brought them down. I glanced up to see several small drones flying above (not Alliance ones). They hadn't spotted us yet but we had to duck into a building while they passed overhead. We made a detour and managed to reach the police station before we ran into more hostiles. But when we got there the station itself was a different story, it was under siege. The building was surrounded by Husks battering on the doors and windows trying to break in.

I knew it wouldn't be long until they noticed us but for the moment they were too focused on trying to smash their way in. I signaled Hetford to stay quiet and slowly drew my pistol with one hand while using the other to help carry the unconscious Daniels. Hetford followed suit and taking careful aim we got in a few headshots before they even saw us coming. The Husks we hit dropped instantly but there were plenty more starting to turn on us, shrieking wildly as they charged. Luckily our detour had brought us through a narrow alleyway that was now funneling our enemy into tried to pick them off as they closed on us but their savage speed made it impossible to get a clear shot (need to watch out for that in future, it's surprising just how difficult their wild, crazed movements make it to aim at them properly). We were already struggling to hold our own when Daniels woke up unexpectedly.

Startled to find himself being carried through the air while robot zombies charged at him down the street he woke in a panic and started thrashing wildly in our grip. Our efforts to hold him steady were only making things worse so I let go of his legs only to be rewarded with a kick in the gut that knocked me back against the wall. Desperately I tried to scrabble back onto my feet but there was no time, the Husks were already on us.

Two of them were still closing on me before I could fully recover while at least three tried to charge Hetford. I had a good vantage point to deliver a clean headshot at the first but the second dived at me a second later. We were so close I found myself staring into its glowing mechanical eyes that were almost like cameras sunk into its eye sockets. It's weight pinned me down while it clawed at me but the awkward position prevented it from ripping me apart as it intended. I managed to get my gun free and pointed it flush with the side of its head before pulling the trigger. Nothing. Just a small alarm from my gun warning me that I needed to reload but my thermal clips were at my belt, impossible to reach now. Behind the Husk I could see more enemies in the middle distance, not a threat yet but warning enough that I needed to end this fight right now.

In desperation I threw all my strength to the right and caught the Husk off guard, rolling us over so that I was now the on top. The hateful creature shrieked even louder and redoubled its efforts to try and kill me. I raised up my pistol and smashed it down on the creature's head, stunning it enough to stop it attacking for a moment. But I didn't stop there, I smashed my weapon against it again and again, ignoring the blaring Reaper siren pounding in my skull. I didn't stop until the back of its head cracked open like an egg and the blue light faded in its eyes.

It had felt like minutes (or even hours) of fighting but in reality it had only been adrenaline soaked seconds. Still I turned my attention to what had changed while I'd been distracted. Hetford was still on his feet with a knife, surrounded by unarmed Husks all trying to get past his weapon and murder him. My pistol was ruined in the brief fight and there were far too many to take on unarmed without help. Daniels was nearby but being dropped by us hadn't helped his injuries at all. He crawled away from the enemy as best he could, largely ignored by the Husks, certainly he was in no fit state to fight right now.

Instead I charged through the crowd towards the police station, making progress by throwing punches at anything that got in my way. I reached the doors with only a few scratches to show for it and started banging on the glass shouting at them to help us. I could see frightened, impassive faces on the other side; they were too scared to open the door. They all just watched me at first, some of them shouting at me to leave them alone, their voices muffled by the glass. Then I heard an argument, someone was shouting at the people at the door. There was considerable reluctance but eventually one of them gave in and threw a weapon out the window for me, a proper assault rifle.

Not exactly what I'd had in mind but I wasn't about to argue. Instead I snatched it up off the ground and turned to face our assailants. They'd managed to get past Hetford's knife and pin him to the ground, I couldn't even see him under the pile of bodies but I started firing anyway. All grouped up around the corporal they didn't really stand a chance. Some of them tried to get back up and charge at me but it was a futile effort. I was able to pick them off easily until the last of them fell. But when I got back to Hetford it didn't feel like much of a victory; they'd ripped him apart.

He was covered from head to foot in scratches, bite marks and worse, moaning in agony. I took a quick look at the state of his injuries. It didn't take a genius or even a doctor to see there was only one thing that could be done for him. Swearing and cursing myself in the privacy of my own head I did what needed to be done. Loading another clip into the gun I put an end to his suffering.

Then I turned away, hating myself, forcing myself to do it so I could focus on survival. In a combat zone there is no space for sentimentality so I helped Daniels to get up, knowing we needed to get inside before any more enemies arrived. I was so worn out at this stage I didn't think I could even reach the station with him in tow but thankfully some of the people inside were now willing to come out and help.

In the station I found a crowd of about twenty or thirty people, about half of them civilians that had escaped to here when the attack began. Many of them were just sitting in the corners crying quietly to themselves but one woman with bright red hair marched up to me an introduced herself as Maria.

"You look like Alliance, am I right?"

I sighed already completely exhausted and drained emotionally by everything that had happened. I'd been awake for... Well I'm not exactly sure, roughly 29 hours I think (I didn't have a watch handy to tell me the exact time). I nodded and took a seat on a nearby chair trying to regain some small sense of normality before replying.

"Admiral Anderson."

"Admiral, huh? Some big shot?"

"You could say that. Thanks by the way."

"For what?"

"I assume it was you who helped us just now."

She shrugged. "All we did was throw you a weapon, not that any of this lot would've even thought of that if I hadn't suggested it. Seem to have lost their wits when this invasion started."

I looked up at her, she looked as scared as anyone but she was defiant and trying to be brave in the face of all this. I admired that while the whole world was going to hell she still had the strength not to give in to despair.

"Listen I've come to get you all out of here. We've been told there's a military base nearby where the Alliance is regrouping. Hopefully you should all be safe there."

"How do I know I can trust you? These people are my officers or under my protection. They go where I say they go."

"Maria I stayed here to fight those things out there. Could've gotten out if I'd wanted to but I'm here because I haven't given up. I need people like you who can stay strong in all this; can you do that for me?"

She seemed to calm down at that, a little at least.

"What the hell are those things?" She asked, gesturing towards the window.

"They're called Reapers; If you watch Citadel news coverage you might've heard Shepard trying to warn people about them in the past. It's too much to explain right now but as you can see they're a very real threat. We have to find a way to stop them."

"Alright, how can I help?"

I was surprised at that, I was just trying to calm her down, I wasn't expecting her to volunteer to wade into a war.

"Uh I think it's something best left to the professionals."

"From the looks of things your "professionals" seem like they could use a little extra help."

I chuckled at that a little, it wasn't very funny but nearly being torn apart by husks will do weird things to your sense of humor an in any case maybe she could help. I could see several of the other survivors watching her and it was obvious they looked up to her as a leader.

"Good point. Look we need to get out of here, can you find out who knows this place best? We need to grab everything useful and find a way out of here."

"As the chief around here, I know this place better than anyone. I'll have some of my men clear out the armory and then we can sneak our way out the back. I can have someone grab a stretcher for your friend too."

"OK grab everything you need, we'll move in one hour."

Frankly I'd need that hour to recover. I slumped down against a wall like many of my fellow survivors ruing the loss of fitness that had come with age. Not to mention promotion which if anything was worse. It pained me to realize that despite thinking of myself as a soldier first and foremost I'd still let things slide as my career forced me off the battlefield and into politics. Time was I'd have been fit enough to make it to the station in half the time, even carrying a wounded soldier.

Maybe I'd have been able to save Hetford if- No I can't let myself think like that. There's no way to know what we would've run into if things went differently. Change one thing that we did and there's no way of knowing how things would have turned out or if any of us would have made it. I've lost a lot of men under my command in my time (saved more than my fair share too mind) but sooner or later you lose someone. In this war casualties were always going to be inevitable.

I knew all this well enough, seen it more times than I like to recall but the knowledge never helps. Each lost soldier gets lodged in your mind, a permanent reminder of your failure. The only way to keep the ghosts at bay is to solemnly promise to do everything in your power to stop anyone else joining them. That helps a little but do it enough times and the words taste bitter in your mouth and almost seem to mock you. Laying a fresh promise over all the old broken ones like covering over an old wound. Even though I'd only met them today I still thought of Daniels and Hetford as being under my command. They had followed me here at my order and one of them had died.

I sighed and tried to think of something to distract myself with. I remembered I'd brought that datapad with me, trying to document evidence the Reapers were real. I nearly threw it away, they were here now, we had all the proof of their existence we could ever need. But having pinned my hopes on it yesterday I didn't feel able to destroy it so soon despite the rationalist in me telling me that it had become worthless.

In the end since I didn't have anything else to do and didn't feel able to sleep I started writing, got as far as Shepard's escape in the Normandy before the call went out and we had to move. So now you know why I had to break off earlier before while I was still out in the open. I don't think it'll be the last time I'm interrupted but maybe the journal will help make sense of all this carnage. Or stop me from going mad.

Luckily the journey to the base wasn't nearly so eventful as our trip to the police station. Possibly because we sedated Daniels this time and carried him on a stretcher. We marched through the streets in silence, just taking in the view of the devastation. Every street seemed to be smashed; we saw empty shells of office blocks blown up, skycars and shuttle craft crashed in the middle of the road. Half the streets we came across were blocked by debris, or our scouts would spot the machines in the distance and we'd be forced to pick another route.

The going was slow, forced to make a detour every few minutes, but we were zigzagging our way towards the base. We searched for survivors where we could, ducking through people's houses to help us stay out of sight. We came across more bodies than living people and some of those that were alive were beyond help. We came across some more scattered survivors though and persuaded them to come with us. It felt good, like I was helping to build something, the start of this resistance I was planning. I wasn't sure what we would find at the base though. It worried me that I might be leading them into a worse hell than the one they'd just come out of and I couldn't risk using the radio to try and contact the base. Then one of our scouts signaled to us that our goal was up ahead. I hurried forward to get a look but I already started hearing the gunshots before I saw it.

I couldn't see much of the base when we got there, wasn't much to see at all. We saw a ramp leading down to a big metal shutter, above it someone had set up a couple of mounted turrets that were cutting down anything that tried to get close. Most of the base was underground we'd been told but it looked like some soldiers had been left topside to hold this entrance against any invaders.

The Reaper forces were throwing themselves at the door, but the mounted turrets were picking them off easily. It seemed odd to see the Reapers fighting like this. They had to see the attack was hopeless, not one of them even got close to the base but they kept throwing husks at it. It seems the Reapers don't care at all about their troops; they weren't soldiers to them just cannon fodder or tools.

Our main concern was not being blown away by the guns when we tried to get close ourselves. We were still some distance away and the soldiers were firing at anything that moved, if we went out there we might not fare much better than the Husks. The others yelled at the soldiers, trying to get their attention but it was no use, they couldn't hear us over the noise of the guns and the shrieks of the enemy.

Maria grabbed my shoulder to get my attention and passed me a flare gun. First flare didn't get noticed either, but I aimed the second so close to them it nearly singed their eyebrows. That got their attention and they finally spotted our group waving their arms and yelling themselves hoarse. As I saw the main doors open I knew we had to move so I grabbed Daniels and started making a run for the base. A few stray shots came my way; clearly the Reapers had brought other troops than Husks. Some of us took a bit of fire but we ploughed straight on, not stopping until we piled through the entrance and into the base.

When we made it inside we did think we were safe, all we could think of was getting some rest, time to take stock y'know? In truth it felt more like a cave than a military base not that we were feeling particularly fussy at this stage. Ahead of us stretched a long passageway carved into the earth, the walls were jagged bare rock barely lit by the feeble and often flickering strip lights set at intervals along the corridor. So there we were, about thirty of us by that point, filthy from the crawl through the streets with several of us bleeding from wounds we'd taken to get here. Standing in front of us was some lieutenant in shiny armor with about half a dozen soldiers all with their weapons raised at us.

"State your name and rank." The lieutenant called out.

"David Anderson, Admiral, former Alliance representative on the Council."

Yeah I may have left out that part; I used to have a seat on the Council myself to represent humanity as part of the galactic community. I resigned when the other Councilors refused to take my warnings about the Reapers seriously. Hell when I tried to push them to investigate they blocked me at every turn, they held meetings without me and basically shut me out. I got so tired of all the political bull, of not being able to get anything done that I left Udina in charge and went back to Earth to try and get us ready. Point was this lieutenant damn well knew who I was, most humans did and standing on ceremony or protocol wasn't gunna help us win this war any faster.

"I need to speak to General Coburg immediately."

"Sorry sir, standing orders are to take all survivors that arrive for processing and reassignment to roles of tactical value. Besides he's not seeing anyone at the moment."

"I think he might make an exception in this case."

"I was specifically ordered to allow no exceptions. You have to go through processing," he said but hesitated when he saw the look on my face.

"Look I'll have your friends sent to the Med Bay for treatment before processing sir but that's the best I can do."

I was about to make it an order when I realized that his men weren't in uniform, they were just civilian militia. The lieutenants uniform wasn't Alliance either but, exhausted as I was I couldn't make out any insignia. Stymied I decided that I'd make do with what I could get for the time being.

"I want to see the General as soon as he becomes available."

We were led away down the endless corridor that took us further and further down beneath the city. Eventually we arrived in a large underground cavern, packed with hundreds of refugees all doing their best to make themselves at home in these cold, cramped, uncomfortable conditions. I had a brief look around before I was hurried into a small office for 'processing' which was just as pointless as I'd expected it to be. Just a bunch of forms to fill out before being shown to our 'temporary accommodation' which was just as depressing as I'd expected it to be. Not that we had any complaints given the tragedy of what had happened today.

I'm lying on a bunk right now surrounded by dozens of others in similar sleeping arrangements (to be honest I was one of the lucky ones, there's crowds of people sleeping on the floor). Not sure if there's still guards outside the door but I think there might be. Tomorrow I'll have to sort some things out with the guy in charge.


	5. Log 4

Log 4

Date: 1ST OCT 2186

Location: VANCOUVER, CANADA

The next day I was finally permitted to see the general. As I was being escorted to the main command center, I saw enough of the base to get a rough idea of its structure. There are three main corridors that lead to the surface (we'd come in through one of these when we arrived). These slope steeply downwards so that they converge at lowest level of the bunker. As I had already seen that area was a mess of makeshift barracks and mess halls as well as a sick bay and a main reception area. Everything you'd expect for housing a large number of people in fact. In the center of all this were elevators that went up to the next level and beyond.

The second level was reserved for general utility rooms, mainly supply stores and armories as well as the communications room. On the top level there was a main command center of sorts and a handful of private offices. Despite being the highest point in the complex there was no direct surface access for that part of the base. For security reasons the only way to access that area was from the lower levels via the elevators. Essentially it meant that if the base was compromised the command center was the final fallback position (although if it ever came to that we'd be trapped and facing a fight to the death). One of the escort guards said he avoided going up there whenever possible. Apparently he didn't like the 'noise' up there but wouldn't explain what he meant.

The operations room itself was clearly set up in some old basement or bunker that was far enough underground to be safe from orbital bombardment. The room was strewn with equipment; mainly data feeds and monitors showing the view from the cameras outside the compound. I glanced at a radar map; it looked like two of the smaller Reapers had landed nearby with a third further away to the north. Another screen showed more Husks throwing themselves at the entrance but they were being held at bay for the moment.

I recognized General Coberg from the moment I saw him, his face triggering memories that hadn't registered when his name had come up. It all came back to me in an instant, the broad shoulders, the dark brown hair only just starting to go gray in places (I envied that slightly given he had a had a few years on me) to say nothing of the expression he wore. His features were the same as I'd ever seen them (even during celebrations) set and determined, his broken nose still pushed slightly to one side following an altercation with a rival officer. For some reason he was dressed in the full official dress uniform of the NASDF (the sort of thing normally only used on parades and formal receptions). It certainly made him stand out of the crowd (it actually looked fairly impressive) but it seemed odd given the circumstances.

He was the regional director of the North American States Defense Force. Like most other nations the NAS maintained its own standing army, not directly affiliated with the Alliance as a last fading sign of their independence. Of these Earth based militaries the NASDF was unusually large (most nation specific militaries had been scaled back significantly since the creation of the Alliance). In many ways it was final reminder of America's former power during the 20th and 21st centuries.

I'd only met the man on a handful of occasions (mostly award ceremonies as I recall) but I couldn't deny he'd made an impression. Amongst military circles he had a reputation for strategic prowess and commanding an impressive degree of loyalty from his men. He was often considered directly responsible for the NASDF's notable training and discipline (particularly noteworthy given that Earth militaries rarely see any real action).

Quite the resume but unfortunately he was also considered to be a very difficult man to work with as an equal. He was often described by colleagues as a big fish in a small pond. A person with the talent and strength of personality to land a major position within the Alliance that instead chosen a smaller playground, with less competition. I realized his presence as base commander might make it difficult to establish myself as the leader of a resistance movement. Legally speaking all Earth based militaries are obliged to assist the Alliance in the event of a threat to the homeworld but this would be the first time that law had ever been called upon.

"General Coberg," I said by way of announcing myself.

"I'm Admiral Anderson, we spoke briefly on the radio yesterday."

"Admiral Anderson," he repeated slowly, seemingly using the time to take the measure of me.

"Yes I know who you are Admiral. I take it there weren't any ships available to carry you away?"

Well that cleared up the question of whether he was going make this difficult or not. Still I supposed I had to try and see his point of view. I might have stayed behind but most of the Alliance had retreated from the system (those that were able to at least).

"General I'm exactly where I want to be at the moment, right in the middle of this fight. I'm afraid I'll be sticking around here until we drive out the Reapers."

"Reapers? Those things that Commander- uh whatshisname kept going on about a couple years back?"

To be honest I almost cracked a smile at that. Pretending not to know the name of the most famous soldier in human history was very much Coberg's style. More likely he was better informed than most, taking care to learn all the facts before dismissing the theory out of hand (at least publicly). Still, we didn't really have time for such games at the moment.

"Commander Sheppard? Yes those 'things'. You might want to go back over everything he said about them when you have a minute to yourself. In the meantime what's the situation out there?"

"We've established this base and a kill zone around the compound. Anything tries to get through, we tear it apart but we've had limited success in getting scouting parties out and into the city. From the few reports we are receiving; the initial attack focused on the space port and the Alliance Command Center. They were both were obliterated in the first attack. Then they began landing their ground troops focusing on the perimeter of the city to cut off any avenues of escape. The big ones flew off after shooting up half of the city. Smaller ones are still hanging around, targeting water mains and the energy grid and so on."

"So they're sealing off the city and destroying basic infrastructure," I summarized.

"Probably to make us surrender to their Harvest."

"Harvest? What the hell's that?"

"Doesn't matter right now. Is there any way we can get the civilians here safely out of the city?"

"Not easily. The space port and harbor where you came from have been overrun now so we can't get out by air or sea. Not that it would've been easy in full view of those death machines in any case. What we need is a clear strategy on how we can destroy those ships without committing too many valuable assets at this stage."

"All things considered General I think our efforts would be better spent getting people out of the line of fire. But If you're asking for my advice on how to fight these things, that's simple. Throw everything you have at them General and then throw some more. What assets do we have left in play?"

"We're building up our forces at this base all the time. The enemy outnumber us but we appear to have superiority in firepower; at least on the ground. These Husk things are unarmed so they're easy pickings. Meanwhile we also have several Mako's stored in this bunker, they'll serve as the brunt of my attack force on these 'Reapers' as you call them. Once we've brought them down we can begin sending out squads to clear areas and take back the city."

"I'd say you're seriously underestimating your enemy general. It will take a lot more than a few tanks to take down a Reaper. What else do we have of use?"

"Well we can get you and everyone else coming in armed up easily enough. We've no shortage of small arms, shield barriers or armor so we'll get you all kitted out. We've got a ton of explosives, enough to level the compound if we had to. Oh and we've got a Quantum Entanglement device as well, not that it's much good to us now."

"There's also the-"one of the officers started to say but he was suddenly cut off by a deafening noise that drowned out all others sounds. I found it hard to even think until it finally ceased, even the room seemed to shake slightly.

"What was that?" I asked turning my head in every direction in an effort to locate the source. I realized I was practically shouting, the noise (whatever it was) had left me deafened.

"One of the damn machines," Coberg shouted back before taking some time to collect himself.

"The Reapers keep doing that every few hours," the nearest officer explained.

"The lower levels are deep enough underground to be less affected but we get the worst of it up here."

"Great," I said while still shaking my head in an effort to clear the ringing in my eyes.

"So what was that other thing your officer was about to tell me?"

"That's classified."

The General said, glowering down out the officer that had brought it up. From the look on his face it was pretty clear I wouldn't get anywhere asking about his 'Classified' toy but something else had caught my interest anyway.

"Fair enough. Tell me more about this entanglement device instead. Can you give me access?"

"What for?"

"To get some news from off world. Try and get an idea of the larger picture out there."

Quantum Entanglement devices are a special type of comms system that can be used to send instant and untraceable messages. Don't ask me how it works (the technology is well beyond me, all I know is it involves particle physics). But what I do know is that they're incredibly rare and each one is only linked to a single location. They're also the only safe means of communication we have left (in fact I had pushed for greater use of the technology after I first heard about it). Every time you use a regular radio you're running the risk of alerting the Reapers to your location. Besides I suspect the Reapers will soon destroy all of our comm buoys in orbit. Once they do that the QEC will be the only thing we have left capable of off-world communication.

"If I were you I'd spend more time focusing on the smaller picture Admiral. This planet, this city, this bunker, that's what concerns me at the moment."

Hard to argue with his priorities but having more intel could only improve our odds of survival.

"I understand General but we all need to stand together in this fight. If the Alliance learns anything new about the Reapers we need to know about it."

"Alright. Well look if you wanna waste your time talking to Udina be my guest. Never could stand politicians myself though. Its one of the reasons I never joined the Alliance, too much politics involved."

So I could use it to contact Udina if the General was to be believed. That probably meant it was a link to the Citadel. Afterall the man succeeded me as humanity's representative on the Council and that's where the Council members are normally stationed. Just like Coberg suggested Udina is a political animal. His pompous attitude tends to get on your nerves at times but right now, probably for the first time, I was looking forward to speaking with him. It was time to find out what was going on.


	6. Log 5

Log 5

Date: 3RD OCT 2186

Location: UNNAMED BUNKER, VANCOUVER, CANADA

Predictably Udina wasn't available when I tried to reach him yesterday. I was told that he and the rest of the Council were tied up in 'emergency meetings'. It didn't take a genius to work out that they were busy with the war. I'd assumed any news from Earth would be top priority but who knows how badly other worlds have been affected? To be honest I don't see how it can be much worse than it is here but it's frustrating not to know. With all other communications cut off this QEC feels like a delicate strand of spider's web. Our last surviving link with the outside galaxy.

I finally got to speak with Udina the day after my meeting with the general. From the moment his hologram appeared in front of me I could see the anger and horror in his eyes. This wasn't the same man that had advised me for years while I was a Council Representative. Back in those days Udina had a tendency to be arrogant, demanding and abrasive. I always felt he placed reputation above all other concerns.

Don't get me wrong, he had his merits as well. He'd certainly been useful when I was on the Council; one thing you could say about Udina is he always knew how to get things done and his methods were undoubtedly effective. The trouble most people had with the man is that his work fed his reputation and his reputation fed his work. The more he looked after one the more the other looked after itself and no one (not even me) was quite sure which Udina was more concerned with. Certainly he had never been forced to chose between them. To Udina the politically wise decision was always the right decision and he seemed to show no doubt in his conviction that he was doing the right thing.

In any case over the years we'd gone from bitter rivals to having a grudging respect for one another's abilities. Not that we were ever what you would call friends but in a professional capacity I probably knew him better than anyone else. Most people thought of him as just another bureaucratic politician. The butt of endless jokes from those who only had brief dealings with him I'd wager. Most people never got to see that his attitude was just part of his determination. It made him worry constantly at every little thing that might embarrass our species in front of the galactic community (don't get me wrong there were still days when I felt like punching him again).

"Anderson I'm glad to see you're not hurt given the circumstances. I apologize for not seeing you sooner but Sheppard's arrival kept me busy for some time."

"He made it to the Citadel? Was he able to secure any help for Earth from the Council?"

Udina sighed, already looking weary.

"Normally I would advise leaving the diplomacy to me instead of a common soldier but I must admit I wasn't making much headway with the Council. Sheppard's arrival served as a catalyst that got things moving again."

"That's sounds like progress."

"Perhaps. The Council itself stonewalled both Sheppard and myself. They're too concerned with their own precious territories to join us in a united effort against the Reapers."

"But you said things are moving forward?"

"We decided to bypass the Council Representatives and speak directly to the leadership of each race. Commander Sheppard will be chairing a war summit between them assuming he can extract the Turian Primarch from their homeworld."

"Palaven?" I asked as my blood ran cold.

"The Reapers have already reached it?"

Udina nodded slowly.

"As I understand it the Turians were able to destroy several Reaper capital ships before they reached the planet and begun deploying ground troops. The attack on Earth was more severe but they have still suffered heavy losses."

It was a major blow to be told that. The Turians commanded one of the strongest, most powerful fleets in the galaxy. Alongside the Alliance (and even more so than us) they kept Citadel space secure. It seemed the Reapers were attempting to devastate the most militaristic races in the galaxy (this even extended to their first target; the Batarians). It was frightening that they could advance so quickly and so recklessly. Still I took some comfort in hearing that Asari space was still safe for now. While the Turians had the larger fleet, the Asari had the most sophisticated technology of any Council race. It seemed plausible they might be strong enough to make the enemy pause, at least momentarily.

"Do we know how the Reapers were able to penetrate our defenses so easily?"

"Our strategic analysts have been piecing together what happened for the past two days. From what I understand they bypassed the Sixth and Seventh fleets entirely before attacking Arcturus where Hackett and his fleet were waiting," Udina explained.

Some of that didn't make much sense to me but I figured I'd be better off pouring through the data myself than getting it off Udina. Not a military man by nature, he was unlikely to have spotted some of the oddities in the Reaper strategy. Besides I had much more pressing questions to ask.

"What happened at the battle? Have you heard from Admiral Hackett since?"

"I'm told the battle was a disaster. The automated defenses of Arcturus Station were still offline thanks to the saboteurs, seriously weakening our defense. Hackett managed to retreat but he was forced to sacrifice the Second fleet to give the Third and the Fifth a chance to escape."

He looked at me, pure fury radiating from his body with each word he spoke.

"The Second and Forth fleets were lost that day and Arcturus station was destroyed."

Arcturus destroyed? I had expected as much given what the situation had been last I'd heard but it was still a gut wrenching blow. I'd known several of the ministers stationed there but it occurred to me how much worse it was for Udina. He had known all of them.

"I'm sorry."

He nodded briefly, acknowledging my condolences but not even attempting to make a reply.

"With the station gone and Earth largely out of contact, the responsibility of leading humanity has fallen to me. Though Hackett will now lead all our military forces."

"I know you'll do everything you can to get us through this."

"Hackett has officially declared the Sol system off limits to all Alliance vessels. I'm afraid we won't be able to offer you or Earth any assistance at this time. It's too dangerous for us to send in any more ships for the moment."

"I understand."

"There is one more thing but before I can tell you I need to impress upon you the need for absolute secrecy. You should discuss this with no one except myself, Commander Sheppard and Admiral Hackett. Assuming you get the opportunity to speak to them again."

"You can count on that Udina. What's this about?"

"Before Sheppard departed the Sol system, Hackett ordered him to visit the Prothean Archives on Mars."

"Mars? What for?"

"He met up with a specialist there, an expert in Prothean history. For the past several months she'd been assigned to looking through the archives for anything that might be related to the Reapers."

"Months? I thought the Alliance were still denying their existence back then. Why the hell wasn't I informed about any of this?"

"It seems the project was run privately by the Admiral. I had no idea this was going on until Sheppard arrived on the Citadel."

"I take it they found something."

"A means to destroy the Reapers."

I shook my head.

"That's impossible."

"You're forgetting that you're the one who makes impossible claims without any proof to back it up. You and Sheppard at any rate."

"You have proof?" I asked skeptically, still struggling to wrap my head around the idea that we might have stumbled across a solution.

"After a considerable amount of digging Dr T'Soni was successfully able to locate the blueprint for a Prothean superweapon. We believe they intended to use it to destroy all the Reapers simultaneously."

"And we think that it will work?"

"It's already clear that we won't be able to destroy them by any other means at our disposal. Our scientists have studied the plans and I'm told that theoretically it is capable of producing enough energy to achieve that goal though we have yet to fully understand how it works."

"Even so, we've had access to the Archives for as long as we've had the ability to travel though space. To find something now, after all this time?"

Udina straightened up and looked me straight in the eye.

"At the very least it has given me a goal to focus on. Levying enough resources to build this device and conscripting soldiers from the colonies to buy us enough time to complete the work. Before I heard of its existence, everything I did seemed..."

'Pointless' I thought to myself. I can understand that well enough, being trapped down here. A slim hope, even a fool's hope would give some meaning to our efforts to delay the Reaper's victory.

"Yeah I hear you," I said. "I'll do the same down here on the ground. Try to hold off the Reapers as long as it takes to build this weapon."

"Very good Admiral. Now you must excuse me, my schedule has a way of catching up to me these days."

As ever he ended the call before I could say another word, typical Udina. At least he also sent through a data stream containing war updates for me to look through. In many ways reading through it was pointless (I was trapped on this planet and unable to help) but I was desperate for any news I could get. That being said, it didn't exactly make for pleasant reading.

On Earth the Reapers were wiping out our satellites from orbit and burying our nuclear missile silos. Not that the nukes were much of a threat to our new robotic overlords. I figure they just didn't want us blowing ourselves up before they were ready to harvest us. Our colonies were being hit opportunistically by the Reapers, but the damage was minimal so far. Elsewhere the news was just as grim. The Batarians had been hit first and taken the brunt of the initial assault. Their homeworld of Khar'shan was swiftly occupied and then fell into a total communications blackout, followed swiftly by the rest of their empire. The Turians were still clinging on to some parts of their home system but that was more because sheer bloody minded stubbornness than from military victories.

There was too much in the reports to write about it all here but there was one thing that did catch my eye. Apparently there's another faction in this war: Cerberus. Originally I had always assumed that they would end up working with us if the Reapers arrived, just as they had supported Sheppard's efforts against them. It made me deeply uncomfortable to consider them as allies (not that the end of days gives you much choice) but it looked like it wasn't going to be an issue.

Instead of joining the fight against extinction the Illusive Man had revealed a different agenda; take the Prothean weapon for themselves and use it to try and control the Reapers. Obviously the sheer number of potential problems that this could raise is staggering. We don't know if its possible, or even if it is whether or not the Reapers could be controlled long term (to say nothing of the morals of the man that would be controlling them). We've made some (not many) attempts to reason with them, to suggest that now is the time to regain control of the situation, not pursue insane goals but it's been a waste of time. With our goals irreconcilable, they've become a separate faction to both the Council and the Reapers. A faction quite prepared to sabotage our own efforts in order to get control of the superweapon for themselves.

Does the Illusive Man's really believe he can control the Reapers? Hard to say given we don't know enough about him to accurately predict his actions. I've seen his file and all in contains is a picture of a virtual projection of him (possibly fake), a recording of his voice from the projection (also possibly fake), his "name" (definitely fake) and a list of missions he may (or may not) have ordered. The only thing we can say for certain is that he is a smoker (because that detail is so obscure even he wouldn't fake it). For a major criminal it's an absurdly thin file and almost everything in it is based on supposition and guesswork.

The thing about Cerberus is that they are the wild card in this fight. They're unpredictable, know us much better than the Reapers do and they've gotten their hands on a whole bunch of Reaper tech to make themselves more of a threat to all sides. According to Shepard the Cerberus soldiers he fought looked more like husks than humans. It seems the Illusive Man has being using Reaper tech in his attempts to create super soldiers.

According to the reports when the Alliance captured some of these soldiers they turned out to be civilians from Eden Prime with no obvious connection to Cerberus at all. We think they may have been grabbed off the streets and implanted with control chips to ensure their loyalty. An easy means by which to replenish their ranks. What worries me is that the chaos here on Earth might give them a chance to make even more, threatening our efforts to keep the population safe. By all accounts these things are more machine than human now, incapable of free will and a danger to us all.

Having lost so much time, studying reports and looking at the war beyond Earth I turned my attention back to lending a hand where I could. Everyone is busy here; building up barricades, training civilians in combat or out scouting the perimeter watching for the next attack. It's funny how something like this brings people together and helps them focus on the task. All normal life has stopped, there's no nine to five so most people just go and see what they can do to help and there's always more things to be done in a time and place like this.

But unfortunately while we're mostly pulling together there's an ugly side to things as well. We're a mostly human population here (it is Earth afterall)with an entirely human military running the base (the Alliance is human recruits only as is the NASDF) but there are still some aliens living here too and they tend to have the hardest time of it. I saw this today when two Alliance recruits had cornered a Salarian for some reason. He was clearly distressed, almost freaking out as one of them was gripping one of the two fleshy growths (referred to as 'horns' by the Salarians) on his head. Salarians hate this being done to them, it was a common tactic of the Krogan after the Genophage to grab both and rip them apart, killing the victim. Doubtless the guards had little idea but what they were doing was tantamount to torture. I quickly moved in, my hand closing around the wrist of the arm that was holding the Salarian.

"Let go of him now or I will have you court martialed, is that clear?"

The soldier let him go and turned to face me.

"Sir, we caught him messing around with our communications equipment."

I turned to the Salarian, his skin was a deep brown with some slighter stripes on his right horn. He looked to be about twenty (which roughly equates to middle age in his species) and was still wearing a very nervous expression on his face.

"What's your name son?"

"Xi Chan, I used to be an electrical engineer before all this started."

"And is it true you were interfering with our systems?"

"I was just trying to boost its output to see if I could contact survivors further afield. I thought my efforts might be appreciated."

"He's lying sir, he could've been doing anything to that equipment. He might even be indoctrinated; afterall everyone says the Salarians are the sneakiest race in the galaxy."

"That's enough now, you sound like a pair of paranoid Krogan. The Salarians are our allies, just like everyone else on the Council and we are not going to start turning on our own. As for you," I said turning my attention back to Chan. "You need to get proper authorization before you start messing around with Alliance equipment."

"I'm sorry sir, I overheard some soldiers discussing the problem so I looked into it. I meant to talk to someone about it but I just got distracted working on it, I'm always doing that. Sorry."

"Well I don't want you working on that radio any more."

"I was just trying to help."

"I need you to work on our Quantum Entanglement Communicator, that's the priority right now. Under suitable supervision of course"

"I trust you understand the basic principals?" I added as I watched his face light up with enthusiasm at the prospect.

"You have a QEC here? That'd be much more effective for long distance communication than these radios. Of course it depends where the corresponding entangled particles are being held. I wonder if-"

He trailed off as he headed away. I hoped I'd done the right thing in letting him have access but it was a risk I felt we needed to take. Communication was the key to getting us back into this fight, if we could talk to each other, share information on the Reapers we might give other bases like this one a better chance (assuming there are any other bases still out there).

For the rest of the day I just focused on the tasks I was assigned. I'm happy enough to let the general find me things to do for the time being, as long as it's useful work and I'm able to get involved with the planning and strategizing. They haven't discussed their crazy plan to attack the Reapers with me again yet but I'm involved in meetings about the defense of the base and so on. I lend my ideas where I can but in the face of such a powerful enemy it's hard to know what to suggest. In a way it bothers me that we've been able to hold out against the Reapers so effectively (so far our defenses haven't really even been tested). I've raised my concerns with the officers here but they have quickly brushed them aside. They just don't want to hear it, frankly I don't blame them.

Later in the afternoon I managed to get some time on one of the radio's. All bad news at first but I found a signal from a couple of soldiers still alive but pinned down by enemy fire. I cast around on the different frequencies until I found a group of civilians nearby. With me giving advice via the radio they set off a distraction that gave the pinned soldiers a chance. They managed to overwhelm their attackers and led the civilians back here. I abandoned the radio so I could watch their arrival. Every life saved feels like a victory in all of this chaos.

Well that's all my news for today; the general has called a big meeting tomorrow to discuss the plan to attack the Reapers. Hopefully I'll be able to call it off that nonsense. The Reapers have a massive occupying force; our entire armada couldn't defeat them. We should be focusing on protecting who we can, not throwing ourselves at an enemy we can't stop. That's my mission now; to save as many lives as I can until help arrives. I can only pray it comes soon.


	7. Log 6

Log 6

Date: 4TH SEPT 2186

Location: UNNAMED BUNKER, VANCOUVER, CANADA

The meeting went exactly as I feared it might. To be honest I hate going up to the operations center at the best of times and this certainly wasn't one of them. The Reapers are still blaring away like fog horns up above us every day. In fact if anything it's gotten more frequent, a constant reminder of the occupation on the surface (I'm sure the Reapers could write a book on psychological warfare if they were inclined to). There have been days when I came down from the top level with a headache so bad it was like an elephant trampling on my skull. Not that I can really make too much of a fuss. Compared to what's going on outside it's a minor complaint.

As I headed in, the general was already waiting at the table along with a NASDF military Colonel and several Alliance captains whose ships had been destroyed even before they could reach them. I hadn't had a chance to meet most of the leadership in the base but I recognized Alexander Chernov, an old shipmate of mine now serving as captain of the SSV Stockholm. I guess if he was here that meant the ship was destroyed but I was glad to see Alex was OK.

I greeted the room and then took a seat opposite the General but he was turned away from me looking at a screen on the far side of the room. When he eventually 'noticed' my arrival he asked his subordinate, Colonel Travis to fill me in. Determined as I was not to get dragged into a pointless confrontation with the General I ignored the implied insult and turned my attention to the Colonel. She was slightly younger than I would have expected (early 40's at a guess) with blonde hair that was cut to shoulder length. In contrast to the General's dress uniform she wore the standard urban camouflage gear of the NASDF.

"What's the situation?"

"That's the problem sir, we don't know. Our satellites and Comm Buoys have all been destroyed by the Reapers and our only quantum entanglement device links to the Citadel."

"So what intel do we have Colonel?"

"Our only source of information right now is word of mouth from the people we take in sir. We're doing our best to collate the various reports into a picture of the outside world."

I was aghast at the news; I'd stayed behind to lead a global resistance on earth but I couldn't get word from anyone more than a few miles away! Clearly my efforts would have to be on a far smaller scale than I had originally hoped. Still with no other options open to me I forced myself to focus on the task at hand. Like almost all resistance movements throughout history we would have to do the best we could with the resources we had, regardless of the circumstances.

"Very well, brief me on whatever we've got."

"Yes sir. From what we've learned we're now the only military base in the city still holding out against the Reapers. We were forced to evacuate Major Harrison and his men from their position near Richmond, about 5 klicks south of here last night. That was the last base out there."

"Why isn't the Major joining us for this briefing?"

"His unit suffered heavy casualties during the evacuation and he himself was injured. He's being treated in the infirmary, I'm afraid they haven't been able to tell us if he'll make it."

"We'll have to hope that he will. Especially if we're all that's left to oppose the Reapers in this area."

"We're not exactly the only ones still fighting. All the other bases have fallen but we're still getting reports of open rioting and occupation resistance in several areas. Moreover many of our own forces weren't able to evacuate fast enough and are currently engaged in fighting behind enemy lines. Most of the city is now a battleground."

"Most of the city?"

"Our scouts report the Reapers have begun methodically clearing the city block by block. So far they've managed to secure approximately 30% of the city under their complete control."

"Is our position here secure? How long will this offensive take to reach us?"

"From what we've seen of the Reaper forces they don't have the numbers in this area to break through our defenses, not yet at least. We have to focus on protecting as many people as possible so the Reapers can't turn them into soldiers to throw against us."

"That's certainly true enough. But that said don't underestimate the Reapers Colonel, we've only just begun to see what they can throw at us."

"They have begun sending a new type of soldier at us that's proving highly effective." She admitted.

I frowned. "What can you tell me about this new type?"

She showed me a picture of the latest monstrosity the Reapers had come up with. It was humanoid in shape but had spiky bone ridges on its forehead and stood about seven feet tall. It took me awhile before I realized I was looking at one of the first Turians to be converted into a Reaper foot soldier. I was told that these new troops seemed to serve as commanders to the rest of the Reaper ground forces; coordinating their assault. They were armed with surgically attached assault rifles and were proving highly effective in leading the Husks and "Cannibals" (What we've started calling the creatures that I encountered on my first day. According to DNA tests run on the Citadel they're actually mutated Batarians captured from the Reaper conquest of Khar'shan).

"So what are we doing about these err new Turian Reaper units?"

"The men have taken to calling them 'Marauders' sir. As they seem to act as leaders for the other Reaper ground forces we're marking them as priority targets. We've begun deploying snipers to areas we're expecting the Reapers to target. The general has put a thousand credit bounty on every proven Marauder kill."

I frowned, mildly disturbed by the implications

"You might get a few mercs helping us that way general but in my experience you get far too many kids gunning for glory by trying something like that. This isn't Illium or Omega, most of the people out there have never even held a gun in their lives before today. And the war going on, on the streets out there is no place for the inexperienced."

"As I understand it, Admiral the Reapers will kill civilians whether they're holding a gun or not," Coberg stated flatly before turning his attention back to the monitors.

I fell silent at that remark. He had a point but it still didn't sit well with me encouraging teenagers to go out and play trainee assassin. Shrugging it off for the time being I turned back to the Colonel.

"Alright what about outside the city limits, have we received any refugees from that far afield?"

"I don't think we've had anyone come in from the North or East of the city but the Reapers have a strong presence in that area so it's not that surprising. We've received brief radio communications from temporary bases on the Vancouver and Graham Islands just off the coast. Reaper forces have landed on the southern shores and are fighting their way north. Most of the bases we heard from reported being under siege before we lost the signal."

"Is there any way that we can evacuate those islands?"

"The general is working on something he thinks will relieve the pressure on those bases."

"We'll get to the general's plan in a moment. You haven't mentioned anything to the south. What's happening on the Western Seaboard?"

"That's a little more complicated sir. We don't have much intel I'm afraid. We know the Reapers have occupied Portland and Seattle and we were receiving a steady stream of refugees from the city until about five hours ago. Since then we've heard nothing. I'll just check the reports again now…" She accessed her PDA and started scrolling through it. When she accessed the latest report I could see the fear in her eyes before she even said a word.

"I don't understand… why would they?"

"What's happened Colonel?"

"We've just received a report; eye witnesses are claiming that Seattle has been destroyed. The entire city is just… gone sir."

I closed my eyes; Seattle had a population of just under nine hundred thousand. Hopefully some would have fled the city before the destruction but... not nearly enough. When I turned my attention back to the room I could see the haunted looks on the faces of my colleagues.

"It makes no sense; why would they destroy a city they already control. We need to get these reports verified they must be exaggerated."

I glanced at the PDA in her hand.

"According to your report that intel was verified with five separate groups before it was sent to us. We have to assume it is correct."

"But why would they- "

She was in shock, hardly a surprise given the circumstances but she needed to be made aware of exactly what we were up against. Hell they all did.

"The Reapers intend to wipe out all sentient life in the galaxy and every action they make is carefully calculated towards helping them achieve that goal," I explained.

"They don't care about capturing territory or forcing our surrender. Destroying Seattle helps the Reapers prevent civilians from escaping north from the rest of the major cities on the Western Seaboard. That makes it easier for them to harvest the population. I know it's not easy to accept, but we'll be hearing a lot more bad news before this war is over. Focus on the living who still need our help, remember your training and you'll have as much chance as any of us of making it out alive."

The general finally turned his attention back to the meeting. "Nice speech. Now if we're all up to date, perhaps we can start discussing how to destroy these 'Reapers'."

"You can't. We need to focus on- "

"Yes, thank you for your opinion Admiral but I will decide where to focus our efforts. Colonel how many of these things are still within the city?"

"Three sir, the others took off and headed south yesterday."

"You see? There's only a handful left to contend with."

"It took several fleets to bring down Sovereign and that was just one Reaper."

"That was the one that attacked the Citadel a few years back? As I recall the reports claim it was what? Two kilometers in length?"

"That's right, but-"

"Colonel, how large are the ones currently in the city?"

"Less than two hundred meters sir."

"Then these little ones don't seem quite as much of a threat to me Admiral. I never have paid much attention to ship design, not really relevant in my line of work but even I know that size and weight matter in these cases. We have a plan to use our Makos to ambush them and eliminate them one by one."

I sighed, however simplistically he had put it he did still have a point. Ship weight was a good indicator of strength as it gave a good indication of the level of gun recoil it was rated to handle (a serious consideration in space). Still I had considerable doubts, Reaper technology is far in advance of anything we have.

"How many Makos do you have for the assault?"

"Fifteen plus our heavy artillery pieces that will be able to cause some more serious damage. I'm planning to use three of them as a distraction to draw the Reapers into the trap. According to our calculations if we hit the targets individually with that level of firepower, it will be enough to destroy them."

I paused for a moment before replying, despite growing tired for the General's constant rhetoric I had to admit he had a keen strategic mind.

"It's not a bad plan but I'm guessing there's not much margin for error, how many Makos have to maintain bombardment of one of the smaller Reapers- "

"Destroyers sir" The colonel interrupted.

"Destroyers? Fitting enough I guess. How many Mako's will it take to bring down one of the Destroyers then?"

"We calculate at least ten minimum."

"And you're sure of those calculations?"

"They're based on data sent by the Citadel sir. Apparently the Turians managed to gather some intel about a Destroyer they shot down."

"Well... it might work but it could also go horribly wrong. If there's a problem on the day those tanks don't have the maneuverability to evade enemy fire. The enemy will be able to pick them off like fish in a barrel. Last time I was here it was mentioned you have another weapon available? Could it be used as a contingency?"

"That weapon remains classified and you shouldn't even know about it. It is only to be deployed when the Reapers gather in sufficient numbers to warrant its use."

"So you're already preparing to the retaliation of this plan? You're waiting for more Reapers swoop in to eliminate all resistance thanks to us killing several of them?"

"That's right, we'll deal them a heavy blow for trying to invade our planet."

"And what happens general when the next wave arrives after that? And the next? They'll wipe out your weapon along with the entire city if they think we're really challenging them."

"And your alternative would be?"

"Focus on protecting civilians, not fighting Reapers. We can't win this war, not without help. We have to hold out here, save as many lives as we can and try to make sure there's still an Earth left once this war's over."

Looking around the room I could already see I was in the minority this time. Colonel Travis had a somewhat thoughtful expression but several of the other officers looked mutinous. They were in the mood for revenge right now not survival and the General was leading them by their hearts. He didn't even try to hide his disgust.

"And what are we holding out for, Admiral? The Alliance abandoned this entire system so now the Earth militaries stand alone. If we want to get rid of these machines we have to kill them ourselves. Few occupations of human territory have ever been maintained for long."

"You're deluding yourself General, the Reapers are a threat unlike any we've ever faced before and they have plenty of practice in subduing populations. Our only hope is to hold out until Commander Shepard can bring the fleets of the Council to Earth and kick out the Reapers for good."

"Bullshit, you're the one who's delusional Admiral. Putting all your faith in that so-called 'hero' that just so happens to be a member of a goddamn terrorist organization! Frankly I have more faith in my weapons."

"That's crossing the line, Sheppard's done more to protect humanity than you'll ever know."

"You're forgetting that this is my base Councilor. I'm sure you're used to relying on the Council up on the Citadel to pull your boots out of the fire when things get tough. But down here, on my base, I decide how we fight this war."

"If you've no intention of listening to my advise then you don't need me here," I said formally as I stood up and started to walk away.

"Best of luck with your mission general."

He would certainly need that luck and possibly a miracle in order to pull off what he was planning. It was just about conceivable that Coberg would manage to pull this thing off but the if any detail of the plan went wrong it would rapidly snowball into a catastrophe.

I had briefly considered staying to argue my case but looking around the room I had known it was a lost cause. I knew some of the ship captains stationed here but the rest are army personnel who've worked under the General for years. They're used to obeying his orders and worse they're out for blood as payback for the invasion. Don't get my wrong, I wanted revenge against the metal bastards as much as anybody. But even with the deaths and the evacuations I figured there still had to be at least three hundred thousand people living in this city. If we killed as many Reapers as Coberg intended it was those civilians that would bare the brunt of the retaliation. It seemed it would be my job to try and get at least some of them out of the line of fire.

Hopefully it was not a job I'd have to face alone and so after I left the meeting I went to the infirmary to check on Private Daniels and the other injured survivors I'd brought back from the Police Station on my first day. I was surprised to find Maria was down here too.

"Checking up on the troops?" I asked.

"Just making sure my officers are being looked after properly, they're my men you understand? My responsibility."

"You don't have to explain it to me, how's Daniels?"

"That useless lump you insisted we drag all the way here? He's alright, very quiet though, spends most of his time sleeping."

"Just getting some rest while I could." I looked up to see Daniels approach and returned the salute he gave me. "Wanted to be fighting fit by the time you needed me for something. Just say the word and I'll be there."

"Shouldn't you be taking your orders from the General, Private?"

"People around here seem to have forgotten that you're the ranking officer in the base but I haven't. Besides I owe you for saving my life."

"It was Corporal Hetford that saved you, I just lent him a hand."

"What happened to Hetford sir? They won't let me see him."

"I afraid he didn't make it son. I'm not sure how much you remember but he was hurt pretty bad when the husks attacked us."

"What? Couldn't, couldn't you have done something sir? I mean-"

"There was nothing to be done Private. I'll remember his face until the day I die alongside the faces of every man who ever died under my command but we have some work to do before we can start mourning."

"Yes sir, sorry sir. What do you need me to do?"

"The General's frozen me out of all major operations following the meeting earlier today. I need you to keep me up to date on what Coberg is up to."

"Of course sir, where should I start?"

"If you're feeling up to it go and report for duty with the military forces here. They'll be suspicious of you at first because I brought you in but just make it clear your loyalty is with them and you support this crazy mission Coberg is planning. Don't be afraid to imply that you think I'm a coward for not getting involved, the General should like that."

"You want me helping the General sir? I thought that-"

"I need eyes and ears inside his operation. Can you do that for me?"

"I'll do my best sir."

"I know you will, dismissed Private."

"What about me then?" Asked Maria.

"If you're willing to help me out try talking to the civilians here, try and get a sense of their morale and what they think of the General."

"That all?"

"Actually I need you to start working on an evacuation plan for the base too."

"Evacuation? Are you saying we might not be safe here?"

"The General assumes we are but somehow I doubt the Reapers could take the entire planet and yet be completely thwarted by this one base."

"Where are these people meant to go if we evacuate them? The whole city's under occupation. The whole world even."

"Right now the Reapers are only focusing on the major cities. If we can get people out into the country they might have a better chance of staying out of harm's way."

"Alright, I'll look into it but it won't be easy getting people out with those walking death machines still out there."

"I'm working on that; just find us an exit. When the time comes we may have to leave in a hurry."

"Fair enough then, Mr Alliance I'll leave that part to you, almost makes my job look easy."

"Mr Alliance huh? I'm flattered."

"Don't get too excited I call all you big Alliance types that."

"Alright but is it Miss or Mrs Police Chief I should be calling you?"

She flashed me a brilliant smile and left just saying she'd leave me to wonder about that. I stared after her for a few moments questioning if I wanted to pursue this. I'd only met her twice but both times had been struck by her beauty and her strength in the face of all this death. With everyone else I could see the fear in their eyes, I could see they were struggling to hold on. She seemed completely fearless, driven only by a desire to help others.

As usual at times like this my thoughts soon turned to Kahlee Sanders again. We weren't together but she still meant a great deal to me, we'd just never been able to find the time for ourselves in all the madness of the last few years. But now I'm stuck on Earth, with no idea how long and Kahlee could be dead for all I knew. She is or was currently based at Grissom Academy station (a military school for people with special skills). I don't know if the war will have reached that far yet or not. I hope she's OK but I realize I'm going to put all thoughts of Maria out of my head. In another life we might have worked out but I can't think about her while I'm still worrying if Kahlee's alright.

I'm not how future cycles will see this if things end up going that badly wrong. At the end of the day this is my record of the war and I'll write it from my perspective. But if we fail and this is being read by some alien thousands of years in the future looking for ways to fight the Reapers just remember that life shouldn't just stop, not even for them. You've got to find things to hold on to or you'll go mad from despair. That cheery thought got me through the rest of the day.

Tried to contact Udina again via the quantum entangler but he was unavailable and the General was keeping me out of strategic planning so I found myself at a loss for things to do. It's a strange feeling being unable to help during a war. I wanted desperately to be doing anything to help, to take charge and start putting my own plans in place. But this was the General's base and sticking to my principals had cost me. I don't regret my decision even so the frustration of being stuck out of the loop is getting to me. Word is that tomorrow the General puts his plan into action. If this winds up being the last log entry you can assume it went badly.


	8. Log 7

Log 7

Date: 5TH OCT 2186

Location: ALLIANCE FALLBACK SHELTER, VANCOUVER, CANADA

I'm not sure where to begin. Looking back it's hard to see why I didn't just shoot the General the second he mentioned trying to attack those Destroyers. But that's not really fair; as easy as it would be to blame this all on him I should've done more to prevent it myself. I can't believe I had the arrogance to imagine anywhere could be safe once the Reapers arrived. If you're reading this I guess you're realizing I'm not great at writing journals. I keep skipping to the end so I'll do it properly and start from the beginning.

I was tense from the moment I woke up that morning. I knew what the General was going to try and part of me couldn't help but hope he'd succeed. Luckily I still feared the worst so I'd arranged to meet Maria and Daniels early that day before the mission started. I was hoping they'd found out some intel so I could start working out how I would react to the situation. I was more than tired of being left in the dark.

"So what've you found?"

Maria started with "I may have found something. I'm not sure."

"What is it?"

"I had my detectives start looking round and try to ask some questions without raising too much suspicion. At first we didn't find much. The base has three main tunnels that lead out of the place, but if it came to an evacuation with the base under attack..."

"You'd be worried about being caught in one of the tunnels and trapped?"

"That's part of it, aye but the worst part is when we get to the surface. Those Destroyer things have been leveling all the building surrounding the base. We'd be caught in the open."

"You said you had something though?"

"Well don't get your hopes up but we think the General might have a few ships still stashed away."

"What would a ship hanger be doing in some random temporary underground base?"

"One of my officers asked about this place and it turns out it's actually an old military bunker, well most of it anyway. They've broken through into other basements and collapsed buildings to expand it."

I shook my head.

"That can't be right. I would've been informed about another military base in Vancouver."

"Oh it's ancient and a bit of a secret apparently. Supposedly it was built after the First Contact war. Alliance brass got it into their heads that Earth could be invaded, but they didn't want to worry anyone so they kept this place a secret. Crazy right?"

"Not if you were on Shanxi," Despite the years that had passed, the memories of our brief war with the Turians were still with me. As the war was our first contact with an alien race and had swiftly lead to the occupation of the human colony of Shanxi I was hardly surprised the Alliance had reacted with a little paranoia.

"OK so it's an old military base, what makes you think there are any ships still here that can still fly?"

"We've learned the general's been sending fuel and spare parts up to the old hanger."

"Spare parts? Sounds like whatever it is might still be broken. Still its the best option I've heard so far. Any idea what's in the hanger?"

"I've gotten hold of a list of some of the parts being sent there but I'm a police officer not a mechanic."

I looked back at Daniels.

"You were the mechanic for the Gunship where we found you right?"

"Yes sir, want me to take a look?"

I nodded and Maria passed him the list; he ran his eyes across it for a few moments before pointing to a particular item.

"There, that's a battery pack for an Armadillo 290. That model never caught on, but it was employed at Shanxi."

"I remember, damn birds had a tendency to fall out of the sky if you ran them for too long but they sure were fast."

"Fast enough to get us past the Reapers?" Maria asked.

"I'm not sure about that, but it's a start. Daniels, have any luck?"

"Yes sir, you're looking at the newest base mechanic. General Coberg wants me with him during the mission. Says he needs a mechanic on hand in case there's an issue with communications to the teams in the field."

More likely he wants to keep an eye on the soldier I brought back with me I thought.

"That's good, just be careful."

"I also overheard the general talking about something called phase two and if it was in position?"

"Phase two? I'm not sure what that could be. What did he say about it."

"They just confirmed the coordinates of it's current position"

"Which was?"

"That's the odd thing sir. If I heard him right it's about two miles out to sea."

I had Daniels read me out the coordinates but he was right whatever phase two was it was underwater apparently.

I put it aside for the moment so I could focus on the next job. I headed over to the operations center where the Colonel was currently in charge.

"Admiral? I wasn't expecting to see you here."

"I asked someone to look into the Quantum Entanglement Communicator. Do have any updates on how that project is going?"

"We have a small team working on it right now sir."

"Good, then I want to speak to them as soon as possible."

"Sir, isn't the assault on the Destroyers our first priority at the moment?"

"Has the General requested I be involved in his assault?"

"Uh not exactly sir no."

"Not exactly?"

"Um I think his exact words were he'd ask for a lapdance from an Elcor before he asked you for help sir."

"Which is why my priorities are slightly different."

"But you could help us, you have more experience with the Reapers."

I could see the doubts in her eyes, the hesitation. She didn't want to go against the General but she worried I was right about this plan.

"I am going to help you if I can, I can promise you that. Now please, ask the techs to come see me about the entangler. It's very important."

"Thank you sir, I'll see to it right away."

I was told Xi Chan was being kept busy but he sent his 'team' to come meet with me. The team in question turned out to be a couple of kids, apparently they were training Cadets who specialized in this technology but I swear they were young enough to be in college.

"You wanted to see us, sir?"

"Yes, this technology is our only link to the rest of the galaxy which probably makes it the most important piece of tech we have right now."

"We understand that sir."

"We need to keep this out of enemy hands at all costs so I need to know how portable this technology is. Can we move it, or duplicate it elsewhere?"

"It wouldn't be possible to duplicate this si-"

"Well we could probably reproduce the -"

"Slow down, now one of you explain."

"Sorry sir. To be accurate we might be able to create another one but we wouldn't be able to reach the stations entangled to this device."

"Stations? As in plural? I thought we could only ever contact one end point with these things."

"It's true each particle is only bound to one other at a specific end point but Admiral Hackett started an initiative to build a network using communicators containing multiple entangled particles bound to different end points."

"So where else can we reach with this thing?"

"That's the trouble sir, all the comm channels have been locked down, the idea was to stop unauthorized access from potentially indoctrinated agents."

"Is there no way to access the locked channels?"

"We have managed to decrypt some of the channels but so far we haven't been able to reach anyone on any channel except the Citadel one."

"Is the device damaged in some way?"

"No sir, we believe the issue may be at the other end. Since we don't know which channels we're hacking we could easily be accessing-"

"Channels for places already overrun by the Reapers, I see. Is there any way we can find out which channel we're hacking ahead of time?"

"They all have an identification code sir but we've lost all the databases telling us what those codes mean. The Reapers have basically wiped out a lot of the information we once knew."

"Aren't there backups?"

"The backups were stored on Arcturus Station sir."

"I see, well let me take a look."

"Sir I don't think-"

"That was an order Cadet -"

"Monroe, James Monroe and this is Sarah uh- Cadet Smith I mean. We'll show you right away sir."

It took a long time for the techs to find and load up the codes. Part of me wondered why I was spending so much time on this, but I had a hunch that this technology might just be our edge. I've been thinking a lot about that lately, what sort of edge or advantage we might have over the races that came before us. They all fought the Reapers and every single time, every species that came along lost the war.

This cycle has already been slightly different, we managed to delay the invasion by about three years by stopping Sovereign. We prevented the Reapers from tearing through the Citadel or catching us by surprise (sort of). I can't help looking closely at every advance we've made in the last three years (such as the QEC's). It's time we never should've had, time no one who came before us was ever given. Maybe it'll be enough, maybe it'll give us a chance if we fight for it hard enough. In any case the Cadets finally got hold of the codes and we spent some time pouring through them. The codes were long complex and seemingly meaningless at first but I felt sure that something about them was familiar. Eventually after a period of mind numbing staring at the codes I finally saw it.

"There, that's what I spotted at first."

"What is it, sir?"

"Commander Yeldman's Alliance record number. It's embedded in the middle of this code."

"Are you sure sir?"

"Certain, he got so many official reprimands I found myself looking at his record more times than I can remember. He was eventually transferred to Arcturus Station."

"They must embed the ID of whoever the channel contacts within the code. We already hacked this one and got no response though."

"If this channel links back to Arcturus that's not surprising. Let me take a look at some more, see if we can identify some priority channels to unlock."

"Right away sir."

The next few minutes were a flurry of excitement in the base as word started to get out. Several more officers soon joined us and started hunting through the codes for anyone they recognized who might still be alive. I think I'll remember that time as the first moment I felt hope again since the arrival of the Reapers. People were starting to crowd round hoping to get a chance to get some news from the world outside our base. There was a big cheer when someone finally spotted Hackett's ID on one of the comm channel codes. The military personnel here had plenty of family they knew were serving in the Fifth Fleet. I thought that one was going to be the pick of the draw and was about to order the Cadets to start hacking that channel when I got an even bigger surprise.

"Admiral we've found your channel." One of the officers said laughing.

"Mine?" I went over to take a look and sure enough there was my own ID number.

"So I guess that leads back to an entanglement device in the Homeworld Defense Division building sir?"

"No I never had a communicator set up there, it was only a temporary post until I -"

I stood up sharply having just realized the implications. "I was going to take the SSV Normandy as my flagship, maybe that's where this one is pointed?"

The Cadets still in the corner started nodding. "Yes that makes sense, we were assigned to help Specialist Traynor with retrofits to the Normandy that included a large quantum entanglement communication network."

"In other words this channel would let us contact Commander Shepard."

The room went silent just at the mention of his name, to everyone else present he was just a legend. But they all knew that he'd once served under my command. I realized that Commander Sheppard had become a symbol to these people, one that I could use.

"I know you must have lots of questions but I'll have to keep this brief for now. Some of you may have heard that Shepard was a criminal or that he'd gone crazy when he warned us about the Reapers for the first time. Well... you only have to take a look outside to see he wasn't crazy. Everything he warned us about is true." I began by saying but they needed more than restored faith in an icon. They needed hope.

"When I chose to stay behind and fight I sent him to the Citadel to get help. To bring back as many allied fleets as he could and take back our home. But until that day comes our duty is to hold out, to save as many lives as possible so we have something to come back to when this is all over. I know General Coberg has other ideas, that he and his men are busy right now preparing their attack. I won't try to stand in his way right now but there may come a time when I need to take command. I hope I'll have your support in that as you all have mine. In the meantime we'll do everything we can to try and establish contact on the other channels and maybe get word to your loved ones. Dismissed."

The gathered officers, troops and civilians all filed out and I was left standing with the two Cadets again.

"You know you never answered my original question. Can we move this thing if we have to?"

"The only important component is the Quantum Hub that stores the entangled particles sir, if we removed that we could transport it easily. We'd just need to find another standard communication platform somewhere to plug it into."

"Good work, start by hacking the comm channel to Admiral Hackett and then the one to the Normandy."

"At once Admiral, but can I just ask why we're expecting to have to move this thing? Are we going somewhere sir?"

"Just focus on your work for now Cadet."

I headed away, we'd made some good progress here but it was time to monitor the General's attack. Far as I could see he was about to kick the hornet's nest and bring the whole mess down on top of us. Since I couldn't stop Coberg from launching his attack it wasn't a case of if we were going to have to run but when. No point scaring the techs with talk like that though. Right now I needed to know what was happening outside.

I hurried through the crowded corridors looking for Maria or Daniels but couldn't spot them. Eventually a burly man beckoned me over, looked to be civilian not military but I headed over anyway. Without speaking he lead me round the corner to a deserted corridor.

"Right then, let's get started. We don't have much time."

"What?" I turned round confused and slightly concerned that this could be one of the general's men.

"Maria said you'd want to monitor the progress of the mission."

"You're one of her men?"

"Her deputy actually, the name's James. James Burges not that it matters. Anyways if we set up in one of the offices near here we can get an idea of what's going on."

I let him lead the way and we headed up into the derelict office block adjoining the base.

"So where are the others right now?"

"Maria's in barracks complex B with most of the refugees we've taken into the base and the rest of her men. If the Reapers start to get interested in the base she'll lead them out before things start to get heavy. Private Daniels is with the General now, he's managed to link up a feed so we'll be able to see and hear the same info the General's getting."

"That's good work, looks like we're all set for the mission. It's due to commence in just over an hour."

Burges shook his head. "More like five minutes actually, Coberg brought the schedule forward."

"Of course he did. Well let's see what he's getting us all into then."

Burges activated the monitors and we started to see video from two feeds; one for the distraction team the other for the main assault force. Both teams appeared to already be outside maneuvering through the ruins of what used to be Vancouver. It was eerily quiet now, no longer the war zone it had been a few days ago. Evidently the Reapers had succeeded in their efforts to comb through this area of the city; stripping it bare of both resources and people.

The Makos from both teams slowly crawled towards their objectives, as I'd predicted the rough terrain was making it impossible to move quickly (not that it actually stopped them either. I swear Makos could drive up the sides of the buildings if they had to). As the infiltration team reached the peak of a pile of debris the first of the Reapers came into view. They would need to move it into position so that the strike force could-. Well it didn't happen that way, they'd just gotten within sight of the Reaper when alarms started going off throughout the compound.

"What is it?"

"Unauthorized transmission." Burges replied, urgently scanning the feeds. "Someone sent some co-ordinates from a secure terminal. I don't understand, why would anyone-"

"What do you mean? What co-ordinates?"

"For the assault teams. Someone just sent their position directly to the Reapers!"

"Goddammit! There must be an indoctrinated agent within the base. Can you find out where the signal was sent from? Or who sent it?"

"No, the command was routed through the main operations center but I can't tell if that's where it originated from."

It wasn't long before we saw the first Reaper beam, shooting across the feed and hitting one of the Makos from the main assault force. The armored truck was thrown into the air like a toy then the whole screen went red just before the feed cut out.

"Daniels, are you there, do you copy?"

At first there was only silence and static then what sounded like shouting on the other end of the line. Looking at the remaining monitors that still showed an image of the battle it wasn't hard to see why everyone might be busy over there. We waited a few more minutes, unable to make sense of the sounds of arguing and general commotion we were hearing, it was coming though too quietly to make out what was being said but I gathered panic was setting in. I was about to give up on the comm when Daniels voice finally came through.

"I'm here Admiral, looks like everyone's too busy to overhear us right now. What are your orders, sir?"

"The Reapers wouldn't waste a good ambush like this, bring up the feeds for the main entrance to the compound."

"Aye sir"

A few moments later the feed appeared on my screen and the sight of it felt like a kick in the guts. I'd expected the Reapers to try another assault while our troops were elsewhere but nothing on the scale we were now seeing. I saw several hulking shapes lumbering forward. They walked like gorillas I guess, hunched over, fists dragging along the ground most of the time but they were two maybe three times the size, their skin an abhorrent mix of metal and flesh. I've still no idea what they are or how the Reapers made them.

I saw a soldier try to use the mounted turret against one of these new monster. The creature simply charged through, ignoring the damage it took. When it reach the barricade it lifted him off the ground and ripped his arms out of their sockets, leaving a bodied corpse for the Cannibals. And all along the line the story was the same, these Brutes took the brunt of the attacks as they approached our defenses. Then the Husks and Cannibals climbed over them in an endless wave, butchering everyone too slow to get away.

Burges swore at the screen at looked back towards the open door behind us. It was clear he was thinking of running but I only shook my head briefly to indicate I thought it was a bad idea. If he decided to go I wouldn't try to stop him or blame him for his actions. Not given the massacre being played out on the monitors in front of us.

"Sir? What are your orders?" Daniels had clearly been watching the feed as well, I could hear the panic rising in his voice.

"Warn them and then get yourself out of there Daniels. Go and secure the Quantum Entanglement tech. Get it on a ship headed out of here."

I ended the connection and immediately called up Maria.

"Anderson, are you there? What's going on? We've heard alarms, gunfire even. The people down here are terrified."

"Someone sold us out or has been indoctrinated. The Reapers have got a new kind of soldier. Massive Brutes that are overwhelming our outer defenses. You need to get the civilians on to those ships and to out of here. Start a full evac; this compound has been compromised."

"How are the hell are those ships going to make it past those walking death machines out there?"

"I think I may have an idea. Focus on getting the civilians onto the transports but don't take off unless I give the word. Or if the Reapers reach your position."

Burges turned to me. "What do we do?"

"I have an idea. Half of one at least. The general and his staff kept talking about a 'phase two'. I got the impression it might be able to get us out of this mess."

"But you don't know what it is?"

"I'm heading to the command center to find out."

"But the traitor or indoctrinated agent or whatever we're meant to call them, they might still be in there."

I paused for a moment. "It's a possibility. Mind watching my back for me on this one?"

He looked like he was going to be physically sick at the suggestion. I'm sure he'd seen a lot in his time as a cop but even then he wasn't even halfway prepared to face this invasion of monsters. I felt a momentary surge of even greater hatred toward the Reapers.

This man had dedicated his life to serving others with courage and integrity. If the Reapers had never come he would have lived his life a proud local hero and never have to wear this expression of shame as he contemplated running away. He had nothing to be ashamed of, this was something he should never have had to face. To my surprise just as I was about to suggest he head back to Maria instead he nodded his agreement.

"We'll try to avoid the worst of the fighting," I promised

We headed back into the main military complex again. We saw a column of soldiers rushing towards the nearest tunnel entrance. Again I felt the familiar pang of guilt as I turned away and headed for the command center. Those men were going try and hold the tunnels against the Reapers. They were going to fight and probably most of them were going to die just to buy us some more time to evacuate. I understood why what I was doing was more important, if those Reaper Destroyers weren't stopped none of us were getting out of here alive, but I couldn't help hating myself for not fighting alongside those men.

I spent most of my military career as a front line soldier, in the trenches at Shanxi, flying missions as captain of the Normandy. I thought of myself as a fighter but every promotion had taken me further away from it. From soldier to captain to Councilor and Admiral. I'd stayed on Earth so that I could fight the good fight; to be a soldier again but now I realize I can never again be what I once was. I see now it wasn't just the promotions, I have changed. Seasoned might be the right word for it I guess. I've come to understand the importance of thinking before you jump in. I'm just not sure I've worked out how to live with it yet.

When we neared the command center we found Colonel Travis hurrying away in the opposite direction.

"What's going on Colonel, why aren't you at your post?"

"The command center has been abandoned, I was the last one out sir."

"And the General?"

"He went with his personal guard to fortify the position at the main entrance."

"How bad is the situation?"

"So far the tunnels haven't fallen, the bottleneck is still keeping them at bay but I doubt it will last much longer, we've also had reports of Reaper forces spread out inside the base, we think they got in by tunneling through from some of the adjacent buildings."

"And up top? Are the destroyers still active up there?"

"The assault force managed to disable one of the Reaper Destroyers before they were wiped out. The other two are now positioned directly next to the compound."

"So if we try to get out using the ships in the hangar they'll just shoot us down?"

"How did you know ab-"

"Nevermind that, just let me know if those ships are still operational."

"Only about half are still working at the moment but their kinetic barriers won't withstand Reaper fire."

"Huh no kidding. Which why you'd better tell me about phase two."

"The General said that was classified."

"And by now he's probably dead. Unless we we all want to join him I need to know what phase two is."

"Phase two relates to the second part of our plan to attack the Reapers, once the Makos had destroyed the first wave, we were going to deploy this weapon to surprise the second wave."

"And what was this weapon? I know it's under water, is it a missile silo or something?"

"It's a fleet of Arcadia class submarines that we're still in radio contact with. They are carrying large versions of the experimental Thanix Cannons."

"All of them?" I have to admit a certain among of surprise. Thanix Cannons are based on Reaper tech salvaged from Sovereign. It's one of the few weapons we have that even slightly affects the Reapers.

"Well that would certainly have given the Reapers a nasty shock."

"But it's a one shot deal sir. After they subs open fire they'll have to dive and scatter to stop the Reapers from finding them. They'll go dark so we'll get no more radio contact from them."

"Well there's nothing worse than having a weapon that you're too dead to use. Call in the strike Colonel, hopefully we'll all be long gone by the time Reaper reinforcements arrive."

"I can't do that sir."

"Colonel-"

"Whoever sent the transmission to the Reapers sabotaged all communication systems immediately afterward. All the consoles in there are dead now."

"But they're just the end terminals, the physical equipment was stored elsewhere in the base. Would it be possible to manually send a message if we got to it?"

It's all down in the communications room on the level below us. It won't be easy to reach it now, they are already Reapers in that area. Even if you got it to work the Reapers will definitely detect the signal as soon as we send it."

"Hopefully the Destroyers won't live long enough to do anything about it."

"The Destroyers maybe but the ground troops will be on our back."

"We'll burn that bridge when we get to it."

The colonel nodded vaguely and started to hurry down the corridor, I think she understood the sentiment in any case. Luckily there was an armory close to the command center full of scavenged armor and weaponry, we grabbed whatever was closest and pressed on. We probably looked a bit strange in that odd mismatch of gear but at this stage I really didn't care. We didn't meet any resistance until we reached the elevator down towards the East Wing. As we called it up one of those Brutes was in there waiting for us, it almost filled the entire space, crammed in. As it started climbing out of the lift so it could rip us apart we decided the stairs might be easier. Good thing to note about the Brutes through is that they're slow. We managed to head back kick down the door to the staircase and race down the steps leaving it in our dust.

A single Marauder barred our path as we headed on. A few steps above it I was able to give it a swift boot to the face to knock it down and then jumped down and used my omniblade to finish it. The East Wing was connected to the surface by one of the tunnels that had been under siege. It was pretty clear that by now East Wing would be overrun but we had to find a path through. We came out of a corridor and saw a firefight ahead. A bunch of Cannibals had a group of Alliance soldiers pinned down but they hadn't seem us yet. We came up behind the Cannibals and a quick grenade helped up remove them. The soldiers headed up towards and their leader, a lieutenant I think saluted me.

"Glad to see you made it in one piece sir, thanks for the assist. The radio transmitter is down that way," The soldier pointed to a side door. "Sounds like your man is encountering a lot of Reapers down that way, we'll stick to holding this corridor as your escape route sir."

"Sorry? My man?"

"Sir? He showed up saying he worked for you and that you'd need access to the transmitter."

"Very well, hold this position, we should be returning shortly"

We headed in the direction the lieutenant had indicated but I was still bewildered by this development. Who had he been talking about? No one knew I was after the transmitter... Unless it was one of the General's men, he might've suspected I'd learn about phase two and known I'd need the transmitter. Still didn't make much sense though, I wasn't sure what game he was playing right now.

As we moved forward we could see the lieutenant had been right about the Reaper presence, there were clear signs of battle and bodies of Reaper foot soldiers. There was red blood spilled here too, human blood, who ever had fought their way through before us had clearly been injured in the process. As we approached the transmitter room we heard loud crashes and a low roaring sound. We entered to find a Brute standing over a man who was lying flat on his back. Well that was no good at this rate he'd be squashed before I could ask him any questions.

We moved in on the monster peppering its massive back with fire from our assault rifles as we charged but it seemed to have little effect on the behemoth. It swung round with one arm aimed at knocking us flying but I grabbed Burges and dragged him to the ground. He got squirmed out of my grip and got back up, opening fire at the creature's chest. I didn't even see the Brutes other fist come round but I felt it pass over my head before smacking into Burges's chest and knocking him against the far wall. The creature turned towards me and I raised my gun thinking I would go out fighting when the creature stumbled and almost fell on top of me. The unknown strange had put a shotgun to the back of it's right knee and blown the joint apart. Still the Brute still focused on reaching me as if nothing else mattered. It crawled across the ground towards me as I scrambled to get away, then the stranger put the shotgun to its head and ended it.

"Sir? Are you alright?"

"Daniels? What the hell are you doing here? I told you to get the QEC and go."

"It's secured sir, but I heard about phase two from the general and thought I should come here."

"That's... Quick thinking there Private, well done. Thanks for the help just now."

I went to check on Burges who was still slumped in the corner where the blow had left him. His neck had been broken by the force of the impact. I closed his eyes and then turned back towards Daniels.

"Where's that damn transmitter? We need to get that message out now. Too many lives have been lost today already."

Daniels nodded slowly as if distracted but didn't move at first, his expression unreadable. I realised he was looking at Burges body, probably one of the first corpses he'd come in contact with while still conscious.

"I know," I said quietly. "But we have to get moving, there are people counting on us."

"Oh. Right. Yes Admiral, right this way," Daniels said as he came out of his daze and led me the rest of the way to the communications room.

The equipment was undamaged and fortunately it didn't take us long to get the signal out but we had no way of knowing if it had been received and even if it was that the order would be obeyed. Those subs would probably be able to get away before the Reapers regrouped and went after them but it would still be a risk for them. There was nothing I could do but pray they'd come to our aid in our hour of need.

With nothing more that we could do here I gave the order to evacuate the base. As we returned to the soldiers we'd left to hold the position we found them in another firefight against a dozen Marauders. This was seriously bad news, the Marauders were clearly capable soldiers, equipped with personal shields and assault rifles. I grabbed Daniel's shotgun and put both barrels in the chest of one attempting to charge us and it went down.

All eyes then turned on me and the Marauders stopped firing at us, instead simply staring at me intently. We stood, all of us frozen, wondering what was about to happen and then one of the lead Marauders suddenly collapsed dropping to its knees. The creature shrieked in pain, writhing on the ground in agony like it was possessed. When it looked up I saw that it was.

"Assuming direct control."

The voice seemed to come from everywhere, deep and hollow and filled with power. I'd heard of this before, a Reaper was using this creature as a puppet.

"Admiral David Anderson, Alliance, Formerly the Human Representative on the Citadel Council. Rejected candidate for the Special Tactics and Recon Division."

Well he or it or whatever had certainly done its homework on me.

"Harbinger I presume? This trick of yours isn't new to me. I know you used it to speak to Sheppard."

"Harbinger. One of the many names I have been given by races attempting to comprehend their inevitable destruction. In the end such labels are meaningless."

So, the leader of the Reapers wanted to speak to me, this was certainly unexpected. Just as Sheppard had described to me I felt an aura of power and arrogance around him. We aren't exactly chatty with the Reapers but Harbinger isn't the first that's communicated with us. Sovereign was confident, prideful even but not actively hostile or aggressive (it did try to kill us but it's attitude seemed to indicate it was simply a duty it needed to perform). Harbinger has always been different in many ways. It's larger than the others, more powerful and seems to bare real malice against us. All in all not the sort of 'person' you want to get the attention of.

"How do you know who I am?" As I tried to keep Harbinger distracted I signaled the troops to fall back, this wasn't a battle we'd be able to win.

"The creature you called Saren shared much knowledge with us. We wish to understand your failure."

"What failure? I don't understand."

"You failed on the path where the Shepard succeeded. We must understand the nature of our enemy."

"Why the hell d'you think I'd help you?"

"You are trying to save these creatures, small things of flesh that wither and die. We can make them immortal."

"Immortality? From you? I think they'd rather die."

"Then you will watch them perish, all of them, day after day until you submit."

"But you won't kill me? Not until you get this information on Shepard?"

"You will tell us what we wish to know."

"Well thanks for confirming that." I said and switched my shields off.

"Everyone get behind me and run, don't let them get a clear shot at you."

The troops fled and I stood my ground letting them get a head start on the Reaper forces. In the spur of the moment I realized I wasn't entirely sure I was going to get out of this myself. The Reapers seemed to notice this issue as well and started moving towards me, keen to grab their prize. They didn't get far before a massive crash knocked everyone to the floor. As I hit the ground the heavy pounding continued and I grinned to myself, imagining each blow as it struck the Destroyers above us. With any luck 'phase two' had just done its work, but that meant I needed to get going. The window for my escape (i.e. Before more Reapers showed up) would be small.

When the smoke and debris cleared, Harbinger's Marauder was one of the few still left standing but it probably shouldn't have been. It was badly injured, one arm broken, the left side of its head caved in from the force of its collision with the wall. But still it remained standing, its controller not feeling or caring for the creature's pain.

"You have gained nothing here. This victory only sows the seeds of your inevitable defeat."

I remained silent and we stared at each other for a moment before I turned and fled, leaving a grenade behind to discourage pursuit.

I don't really have time to recount the rest of the fight through the base in detail. My team fought well, taking on swarms of Husks, Cannibals and even a Brute or two. We didn't lose anyone but it was a tough fight and not many of us came through unmarked. When we reached there were still several ships left, more than I expected really. We found the Colonel there with a few men and a makeshift monitoring station.

"What are you still doing here Colonel, I'd have thought you'd have taken a shuttle by now."

"Actually I asked them to wait behind for you, Admiral."

"Xi Chan? You're still here? I sent Daniels to evac you and the other techs as soon as this started, where are they?"

"Cadets Monroe and Smith are already on an evac shuttle along with the QEC, sir."

"Then why did you stay behind?"

"I've designed a short range communicator to interface with the QEC, for your personal use sir. You'll need me with you to operate it."

"Very... Uh very forward thinking of you Xi Chan, thank you. But there's one other thing."

"Sir?"

"Can you rig up something that can broadcast a signal to the rest of the city?"

"What should it say?"

"Warn them that the Reapers will return soon enough, bringing retribution for the Destroyers we killed. Tell them to get out if they can, anyone that stays..." I didn't finish the sentence, I didn't need to.

"I can probably set something up once we're on the shuttle," Xi Chan promised.

"Okay good. In the meantime wait here, I expect we'll be ready to go soon."

I turned back towards the Colonel.

"Why are there so many ships left, is the evac not complete yet?"

"We found a civilian woman organizing the evac by the time we arrived, said her name was-"

"Maria, yes I asked her to start getting people out, where is she now?"

"She went back to North Wing to get the last group of refugees. And-"

"And what?"

She pointed to a monitor and I saw the video feeds again. More than half the cameras were gone by now, Reaper forces could be seen in every single video by now, all over the base. Then I saw North Wing itself, the survivors were grouped in the main hall there was maybe twenty or thirty fighters still standing but what they were up against...

The rest of the hall was filled with Reaper troops, there were no gaps between them, no way of distinguishing between them any more. It was just a wall of metal and gray flesh, pressing against the fighters so close in places that they were forced to fight hand to hand. For a moment I thought I saw Maria, fighting side by side with the General but then there was shift in the crowd and they vanished from view. I scanned the other feeds but there was no one else left.

"Shut it down."

"What?"

"I said shut it down, we're leaving."

"But those people, I thought you could-"

"I can't save them, don't make this any harder Colonel, that's an order. Are the skies clear of Reapers?"

"Yes phase two did its work."

"Then we go now, the Reapers have identified me as a priority target. If we wait any longer the Reapers will send reinforcements and we will all die."

I hate myself for those words but I promised myself that this would be an honest record of events on earth. If you're reading this from the next cycle, if we failed and you're facing the Reapers, I hope this helps you understand the hard choices you're about to face. I hope it helps you succeed where I think we're going to fail.

I shouldn't think that way but right now I'm on one of the shuttles, looking back at what used to be the city of Vancouver behind us. We were the last shuttle out, behind us there are no signs of life left. Beyond any doubt I know this city is finished and I don't know if it will ever rise again.

I've seen this view of Vancouver a dozen times over, it used to be so beautiful, the way the clear blue river snaked its way through the city with the mountains rising up behind it. Even the high rise buildings had a certain pleasing aesthetic in the way the light reflected off them each morning. Now most of those buildings are flattened (some of them crushed by the Reapers as they died no doubt, I can still still their broken corpses strewn out atop the rubble).

If I use my binoculars I can still see the Husks on the remaining buildings. They look like ants, the way they swarm over the buildings, there must be tens of thousands of them at least. There are fires burning everywhere and the river looks like a spaceship scrapyard, full of half sunken wrecks.

Shepard I hope you can bring help soon because looking at the way the Reapers consumed this city one thing is abundantly clear. We can't do this alone.


	9. Understanding The Threat

**Author's Note: Congratulations you've made it though the first section of the book, I hope it wasn't too grueling. As you will see the book is divided into 5 sections, each starting with a flashback from Anderson's past like the one below, enjoy!**

 **P.S. If anyone can spare the time to review this I would really appreciate the feedback.**

Understanding the Threat

 _It was three days after the battle of the Citadel when I finally managed to get a sit down with Commander Sheppard. Needing somewhere private to speak but also wanting to unwind after everything we'd been though we ended up in Flux, a bar in the upper Wards. Unsurprisingly it was still closed due to the damage caused by Sovereign's destruction but quite frankly we both felt we were owed a quiet drink so we snuck in with some of Sheppard's crew and left credits behind the counter._

 _We had a good laugh that evening, my first since the battle to be honest but we all knew why we were really here. I wanted to hear exactly what had happened during their time chasing down Saren and everything they could tell me about the Reapers. Up until that point I'd had only three things to go on: Sheppard's vision, the first time I saw a Reaper for myself and the battle that had one wiped out a third of our fleets just to destroy a single ship._

 _Once we got started on that topic the revelations came thick and fast._

 _"So you're saying that huge ship we saw actually was a Reaper?"_

 _The Commander nodded_

 _"They're a race of machines each driven by their own individual AI. We actually spoke to this one ourselves though a virtual interface."_

 _"What did it say?"_

 _"Sovereign threatened to bring about the extinction of every intelligent race in the galaxy. He said- wait how did it go again?"_

 _"You exist because we allow it. And you will end because we demand it."_

 _We all turned to stare at Tali, the young Quarian the Commander had recruited on his mission. The recreation had been delivered with a creepy (and I assumed authentic) inflection._

 _"Sorry," she said self-consciously. "I can't help it if I happen to have a good memory for words prophesying galactic annihilation."_

 _"Sure." replied Garrus a Turian C-Sec officer who had been investigating Saren until he decided joining Sheppard was the best way of bringing him down. "Just remind me never to watch a horror movie with you."_

 _"I have to admit I having a hard time wrapping my head around all of this. As tough as Sovereign was to defeat it still wasn't nearly up to the task of wiping out every race in the galaxy. I don't suppose you have any idea how the Reapers planned to accomplish that?"_

 _"Actually they almost succeeded until we stopped it. Well I say we but it was mostly just the Krogan as always." chuckled Wrex, a seven foot tall Krogan who loomed over the rest of us while drinking ryncol. Like most Krogan he was physically intimidating but I got the sense it ran deeper with this one. Although the line was delivered casually there was just a hint of anger as he dropped the reference, an anger that went beyond the normal Krogan male posturing._

 _"I hate to say this Wrex but one of these days you're going to have to stop making references to the Rachni War," pointed out Gunnery Chief Williams._

 _"Ah you know you like my stories Williams. Anyways it's true, at least the part about Sovereign almost succeeding."_

 _"What do you mean?" I asked. "I'm still not even sure what it was trying to accomplish."_

 _"Sovereign was trying to activate the Mass Relay that's built into the Citadel," Sheppard explained. "It leads out beyond the edge of our galaxy, where the rest of the Reapers are hiding in dark space. We destroyed it just in time to prevent that from happening."_

 _"Then the Reapers could have flooded right into the heart of Citadel space. We would never have stood a chance against them."_

 _"That's what happened to the Protheans 50,000 years ago and to those that came before them. They too used the Citadel as a center of galactic government just as we have. When the Reapers took control they crippled the leadership, seized control of the Relays and learned everything there was to know about the Prothean Empire in one stroke," explained the Asari Liara, a Prothean expert and the final member of Sheppard's group._

 _"I still can't understand why Saren would throw his lot in with the Reapers. I mean I always knew he was ruthless, hell I'd even call him sadistic now that I've been granted access to his mission reports but he still tried to be a good Spectre. It's hard to imagine him bowing to some robotic overlord."_

 _"He was indoctrinated by Sovereign."_

 _"Indoctrinated? What does that mean?"_

 _"The Reapers seem to emit a signal that makes people obey them. At first Saren probably just saw Sovereign as a tool for getting what he wanted. More power, more wealth, more influence but over time it turned him into its tool," explained Garrus._

 _"Are you sure? Seems like a good excuse to hide behind. Maybe he just said that to justify his crimes."_

 _"That's not true, my mother got drawn in by the same signal. She originally went to Saren so that she could act as a calming influence on him, offering help so that she could moderate his actions or sabotage them if he was too far gone. Instead I had to watch her die still fighting the effects of indoctrination," said Liara, her eyes filled with tears._

 _"I'm sorry," I replied, feeling guilty to have been so dismissive._

 _"Don't get us wrong though none of us are claiming that Saren was a saint," Garrus continued._

 _"I've been back over his files since his death and the signs are that he was already branching out and abusing his power long before he ever encountered Sovereign. He had his fingers in a lot of different pies, mainly smuggling illegal weapons for personal use and an extended intelligence network. Not unheard of for a Spectre but he also had agents in several criminal gangs and by the sound of it they'd stopped trying to bring the gangs down. Now they were just fronts for Saren's increasing influence, he was building a big network under his control and using his Spectre authority to cover it up."_

 _"You don't need to remind me what Saren was, I saw enough of it first hand," I pointed out._

 _"Right, of course. But the point is when he found Sovereign it changed him. Made him believe that the Reapers were going to win regardless of whether or not he agreed to help them. When he decided victory was impossible he tried to cut a deal that would save us. Not that the Reapers would have honored it obviously."_

 _"Sounds like the Reapers have all the best tricks, we're lucky you stopped them.."_

 _"I'm not convinced we stopped the Reapers for good. It's possible we've only bought ourselves some more time," the Command said._

 _"You really think they could still make a comeback? I thought they needed the Citadel Relay to do it."_

 _"That might not necessarily be true. Logically speaking it doesn't make much sense for the Reapers to send themselves into dark space if they weren't confident they'd be able to make it back again. As a machine race they may be capable of feats we couldn't imagine. Even if it takes years, or centuries to get back it might not deter them," Liara pointed out._

 _"But they've lost their ace in the hole. That first strike against the Citadel that crippled the Protheans won't work against us now. So they'd have to face us on our terms."_

 _"That's true but given how many of them Sovereign claimed there were not to mention what we've seen of the strength of just one Reaper..." she fell silence, not having to explain that against an armada that strong she didn't think we could win._

 _"So what can we do?"_

 _"Well Liara's learned about something that might give us a chance."_

 _"What is it?"_

 _"Well, while I was attending my mother's funeral I ran into a lot of her old friends. She was a very influential woman in her own right before she joined Saren and so many of them were key players in Asari society. It seems I have a skill for getting information out of people because I managed to find out about a reward the Council has planned for Humanity."_

 _"A reward?"_

 _"To thank the Alliance for saving them during the battle of the Citadel. They plan to offer your species a seat on the Council."_

 _"Really?"_

 _I was astonished at this news. Although many species had joined the Citadel and were subject to its laws, few races actually had a seat on the Council itself (only four in history and currently just three). The rest were represented by their embassies only. A seat on the Council had long been the Alliance's ultimate ambition but as a newly joined species many feared it might even be centuries before we achieved it._

 _"They plan to ask Sheppard for a recommendation for the role."_

 _"And who are you planning to nominate?" I asked, my attention now focusing on the Commander._

 _"I'm planning on choosing you sir. We need someone on the council who never doubted the Reapers existence."_

 _It was a lot to take in, overwhelming. Any Council member has an enormous responsibility to face, the leadership of an entire galaxy. And more than that I would be responsible for ensuring their survival in the coming war. But as a soldier I always had a response ready when duty called, no matter the stakes._

 _"You can count on me Commander, I'll always have your back."_


	10. Log 8

Log 8

Date: 6TH OCT 2186

Location: WELCOME, WASHINGTON, USA

After our escape from Vancouver we headed south in our shuttle towards what was formerly the USA. Our plan was to assess the progress of the invasion along the rest of the Western Seaboard. Once our scouting was done we'd agreed to rendezvous with the rest of the ships that escaped in the ruins of Seattle. We hoped the Reaper presence would be minimal in a city they'd already destroyed.

That was the plan but unfortunately we hadn't counted on the Reapers having flying units (other than the Reapers themselves obviously but we'd figured a giant death machine would be easy to see coming). We were doing our best to recuperate from the horrors of Vancouver when the shuttle suddenly swerved violently to the right. Everyone on board was thrown from their seats with one medic who had been crouching over a patient getting his head smashed against the wall. Annoyed I dragged myself to my feet and staggered towards the cockpit.

"What the hell's going on? We've got wounded back here in case you've forgotten."

"Sorry sir. Had to take evasive maneuvers to avoid hitting- Actually I don't know what the hell it was."

"Where is it now?"

"Above us somewhere, can't say where exactly our scanning systems are being jammed."

"That pretty much confirms it's the enemy," I muttered looking up. For a moment I saw a dark shape in the sky but as the shuttle banked again it vanished from view.

"Are we in trouble?"

The pilot shook his head.

"Not yet. Kinetic barriers should keep it bay-"

His eyes widened and he rechecked the display he was reading twice before speaking again. Something was definitely wrong.

"Kinetic barriers non functional!"

"Excuse me?"

"I don't understand it sir, they looked fine on take off."

"It's an old ship," I muttered but with considerable unease. The Armadillo 290's were certainly prone to malfunctions but I'd never seen something like this before. There was another crash, much bigger than before, this time I knew we'd been hit.

"They've ripped off two of our thrusters, we can't outrun it now!"

There was panic rising in the pilot's voice. As I looked at his face for the first time I realized just how young he really was (probably no older than nineteen) and that he was absolutely terrified. His fight or flight reflect had kicked in but right now he couldn't see any alternative than fleeing.

"Pilot! I need you to focus, concentrate on the sound of my voice. We need to find some cover, are you able to land this thing?"

He calmed down slightly although it was clear it wouldn't take much more to break him entirely.

"I'll do my bes-" He was cut off by a second collision that knocked us all sideways.

"Negative we've just lost a third thruster. Get everybody out right now! Just grab the parachutes and go!"

With no time to think I grabbed a pack and jumped. Some of the others managed to follow my lead but for several of them (including the pilot) time simply ran out. I saw a shadow pass over me and then the shuttle simply disappeared from view. As we fell I scanned the skies for our attacker but I couldn't spot anything. Frustrated I opened my chute and began the final drift toward the ground.

Unfortunately Daniels had other ideas and hadn't had much skydiving practice (which might explain his twisted ankle when I found him for the first time). He crashed into me as we descended, sending us both spinning wildly out of control. Luckily we weren't too high up by that point but it bad enough as it was. I was knocked into a nearby tree and my chute got caught in the branches stopping me dead. The sudden arrest of momentum swung me round and I hit the trunk hard, pain flaring through my arm as it took the brunt of it. I was left dangling in the tree, not close enough to anything to be able to get myself out of it. I'd had worse landings in my time but this was not the best time to be stuck.

In the distance I could now see what had happened to our attacker. It had hit our shuttle and ended up being pulled down with it. I could see it furiously thrashing around inside the wreckage. Then with the sound of rending metal it ripped away a large chunk of the hull and forced its way out giving me my first look at this new horror.

My first thought was that it was shaped like some sort of mechanical bird or bat. It was massive though, far bigger than any abomination I'd seen the Reapers throw at us so far even the Brutes. At a guess I'd say it had a five meter wingspan and was about six meters long from its elongated neck to the tip of its tail. But most concerning of all was its head, complete with mounted canons, turning to face my way.

If anyone ever reads this all I think I can advise you about facing death is that its not a thing you can ever get used to. It can come at strange and even unexpected moments. Some firefights you can laugh off easily while other moments will haunt you forever. But the one thing it always does is force you to reflect, sooner or later. Thinking back, I realize how badly the loss of Vancouver affected me. It might seem strange, to speak with almost surprise at how a tragedy like that affected you but it's more than just the loss. I've faced loss before, every soldier has, and while you always feel the pain, there is something more at play here, something I only now begin to recognize.

I'm afraid. Afraid of not being able to make a difference, afraid of making bad calls and getting more people killed. The Reapers set up Vancouver as a trap, allowing us to build up a resistance only so we'd be gathered in one place, all the easier to finish off. We can't afford to forget how intelligent the Reapers are again. We, I, allowed their overwhelming strength to blind me to the fact that this enemy is just as cunning as it is powerful. They won't just destroy us, they'll do it in the most efficient way possible, a brutal calculus of death.

As an experienced leader I know I can't share these doubts with anyone else. My duty is to show strength, to clearly believe in victory so that those that follow me will be inspired. Normally my dedication to duty, to responsibility keeps any doubts at bay but I know this is the big one. The greatest threat we'll ever face in our lifetime and I can't help that it gets to me.

Projecting strength in the face of all this carnage is damn near impossible. I know what I need to do, the person I need to be to win this but privately I am dragged down by thoughts that I am deluding myself. That imaging I can defeat a race that has killed so many is nothing more than blind arrogance but there is no other choice. I guess I'll have to draw strength from my new surroundings, this place that is-.

Huh, going back to old habits again there, I cut off midway through the action again. If anyone does stumble across this silly old journal of mine I do apologize, I can't help but get distracted sometimes.

So there I was hanging from a tree by my parachute, unable to move and with a fractured arm from where I hit the tree. In front of me a Reaper death machine about to rain artillery fire down on me. I've gotten out of a lot of scrapes through sheer luck but this time I have to thank the skill of my rescuer Major Coats. He was in one of the shuttles that had left before us and had decided to double back and join our planned scouting mission. Not exactly in line with my orders but I couldn't help remembering a certain Admiral who, having been promoted further than he liked, ended up deciding he'd rather fight the good fight. He arrived in time to see what was going on, with no weapons on the ship he did the only thing he could do. Ordering all his men to jump ship he set a collision course before bailing out himself. His ship hurtled into the scene catching the creature at the right angle to smash its head against the ground. Getting caught between a rock and a hard place would probably have been less destructive by comparison.

After getting me out of the tree (In an undignified incident that I see no reason to describe here) he introduced himself and said he'd scouted a small village two klicks south of our position which would be a good place to hold up in.

When we arrived I was (I still am) astonished at how little affect the war has had on this place so far. There was no power here now, everything had been cut off before news of the invasion had reached them. They'd seen smoke rising from the city in the distance and that was all. They weren't stupid, far from it. They knew something massive was going on but they'd become cut off. It's worrying how quickly, how efficiently the Reapers have been able to isolate people. With no electricity thanks to the Reapers they had no means of contacting the outside world. Of course they could have sent people out to investigate and did but no one had yet returned.

When we filled them in on all that had happened they were dignified in their response and generous in their offers of help for us. You could even say that they were very Welcoming (My little joke based on the village being called "Welcome". Not a great joke but it raised a few groans from the squad). I know that every man in our squad was given a warm meal and a place to sleep for the night. I'm staying with the Stevensons, a family that runs the local convenience store. They took in myself, Daniels and Coats and welcomed us into their home. I've always been a city boy (having been born in London) when I stayed planetside at all, which isn't often. I've lived on distant planets, ships and space stations (I have a really nice apartment on the Citadel) but I can't help being charmed by this place and its people.

I stayed up late with the lads, Jeff Stevenson and his son and a very nice bottle of whiskey (we had lots of sorrows to drown afterall). For awhile we discussed everything we had let them know about on our arrival. I'm sure it was a lot to take in.

"So what do they actually want then, these Reapers?" asked Jeff.

"You really don't want to know, just trust me we need to stop them, somehow."

Then Daniels piped up with

"But what did they want from you, that one you called Harbinger seemed very interested in you."

"It's hard to say exactly, I-"

"You actually spoke to a Reaper? Who is Harbinger anyway? Is he like an important one?" I held up a hand to stem the flow of questions from Will not that I disapproved in the least. In many ways he reminded me of Jason when he was about that age (around 16 I'd guess). It wasn't just the physical similarities, the dark skin or the intricate patterns shaved into his short hair, it was the look he got in his eye when talking about a topic that excited him. My son still gets that same look to this day when he's talking about a new design he's come up with.

"Hold up, I can't answer everything at once. We think Harbinger might be the leader of the Reapers, well that was Shepard's impression of it anyway."

"Commander Shepard spoke to him too?"

I chuckled a little despite myself at that, it wasn't hard to see who his role model was. Given his accomplishments it was hardly surprising the kid idolized Shepard but I wondered how the Commander would react if he knew. Then the kid said something that surprised me; it's true that sometimes the truth comes out of the mouth of babes.

"I know loads about you and Shepard. We did a project about Specter candidates at school." He was saying.

Well it was true I'd once been considered for the Specters just like Commander Shepard but unlike him I'd failed, Saren saw to that.

"You were a candidate for the Spectres, sir?" Asked Major Coats in surprise.

"A long time ago, yes," my eyes widened as I realized the implications.

"That's what it was talking about."

"Sir?"

"Harbinger, it mentioned that I failed to become a Specter."

"I'm sure that wasn't your fault."

"What I mean is Harbinger talked about wanting to know what made Shepard different from me. It said that Shepard had succeeded where I had failed and it wanted to know why."

"Like a baseline comparison?" Asked Daniels.

"Why not? Shepard has been involved in the death of two Reapers so far and he defeated the Collectors. Logically speaking they'd want to know what makes him so special."

"And they've decided that him being a Specter is the answer?" Asked Coats skeptically.

"The first Human Spectre don't forget and the only one in the Galaxy, that makes him unique. A machine might interpret that as being 'special'" mused Daniels.

"Then we'll have to find a way to turn this... Reaper obsession to our advantage in some way. We need every edge we can get over them."

"Maybe," I said. "But I think we're still missing a major piece of the puzzle here. I'm sure the Reapers could learn what happened without my help if that was all they wanted. There must more to it but I've no idea what Harbinger's endgame is."

"Surely its the same as the rest of the Reapers. Wiping us out like you said," Daniels pointed out.

"Harbinger feels different to the others somehow, more aggressive. It takes over hosts so that it can attack us directly, no other Reaper does that on a whim."

Silence fell for several minutes as we all thought about our current overlord.

"What did happen to stop you becoming a Spectre anyway?" Asked Will.

"I was never able to find that out."

"I'm sure the Admiral doesn't want to discuss it," said Jeff sternly.

I raised a hand to calm him slightly.

"No I don't mind talking about it. It all came down to a mission at an eezo refinery with another Spectre, Saren Arterius. He was supposedly there to assess my aptitude as a candidate but instead he sabotaged it."

"What did he do?"

"Basically? He destroyed the refinery, I've never seen anyone more brutal or ruthless than he was that day, except for the Reapers of course. Afterwards he claimed I had forced his hand by alerting the guards,. He'd always had an anti-human agenda, it was just his way of holding humanity back."

"Well Harbinger won't learn much then," said the Major. "There was nothing you could've done. Just pure luck Shepard got the job and not you."

"Was it?" I asked (mostly to myself). "Shepard's mission went south too, the objective was destroyed, the Spectre sent to observe him killed. Another disaster with the same cause, Saren. But the Commander never gave up, he inspired others to follow him and eventually proved that Saren had turned traitor. Maybe that's what makes Shepard unique, he never stops fighting for the mission."

The others didn't have an answer for that but we talked for a little while longer before everyone else headed off to bed. After that I went out onto the porch where I'm sitting now. It's quiet out here and dark. With no power there's no artificial light, no streetlamps or houses lit up around me. It feels so peaceful here, so good to just sit down, feel the breeze.

When I look up I can see the stars again for the first time since before all this began. It still reminds me of my first mission, seeing space like this, it takes me back to a time when the galaxy was an infinite mystery. I was there in the time when we first discovered an alien species, there's something about that that's never really left me. A sense of endless wonder, when we were just taking our first steps and everything was still waiting to be discovered.

We never quite expected that the Reapers might be part of that mystery, but it always seems to be that way. When we discovered aliens for the first time we ended up at war with them. Now we've discovered a bigger secret and a greater threat. Apparently you can't have one without the other.

Speaking of threats, someone in the Vancouver base sent a transmission to the Reapers. They must be indoctrinated and that means they're going to betray us again, assuming its not one of those killed in the attack. It could only have been someone with access to the Command Center operations during the attack: The General and his staff, the Colonel, Daniels and technically Burges and myself through the link Daniels set up (but I hope I can discount myself as a suspect!). Oh and possibly Xi Chan might've had the hacking skills needed to access the system (or some other hacker I never even met). Too many suspects, no real way to narrow down the list. I can't even rule out the ones killed in the attack (who knows if the Reapers even care enough to spare one of their indoctrinated servants).

I feel my doubts dragging me down again, being here has helped but this peace is an illusion and the war is dragging me back. If you're reading this from the future my advise is this: these moments are precious, don't waste them but don't expect them to last. Draw strength from them and then get back to the fight, if you fail all of this will be destroyed.


	11. Log 9

Log 9

Date: 9TH OCT 2186

Location: WELCOME, WASHINGTON, USA

The day after we arrived was about as good a day as I think we're ever likely to get until this war is over. There isn't much in the way of governance for a small place like this but a handful of people were nominated to hold a meeting with us in the town hall. The first thing we had to sort out was if we would even be allowed to stay here long term. Personally I was in favor of of it, the Reapers are focusing on the major cities, places like these will give us breathing room. A chance to maneuver and to act without being under constant threat of attack. Initially was worried that the people here might be reluctant to let us remain in fear of reprisals but I've been bowled over by the level of support they're willing to offer. With their help and local knowledge we've already been able to establish some patrols in the area and scouting of the nearby villages.

With the small group we have present (barely more than dozen men between myself and Major Coats) we'd have struggled to cover much ground but we've no lack of volunteers. People are really willing to do almost anything to help our cause but we've tried to keep them out of the fighting for the time being. Mostly the volunteers help track enemy troop movements and visit nearby settlements to get their support. About 50 from Deming, 100 from Maple Falls and we've been told we can expect more volunteers from a place called "Peaceful Valley" (which is apparently not so peaceful anymore, I had to send Major Coats with a squad to deal with reports of attacking Husks).

The danger is that the bigger this new resistance grows the more likely it is we'll attract the attention of the Reapers. At the moment it's likely there's far more important threats for them to focus on but if they do notice us, a single Destroyer could crush our entire group in minutes. We've seen a couple of them fly past in the distance already. It's always a tense moment waiting for them to pass us by but the people are coping. We could try to find a new underground base that's out of the reach of Reaper weapons (some of the lads joked about digging a secret mountain hideaway) but we'd end up under siege within a week. For now our best bet is to remain scattered and focus on trying to evacuate settlements before the Reapers reach them.

Our other major concern right now is access to supplies. The Reapers have actively targeted as much of Earth's existing infrastructure as they could (those of us they don't harvest are meant to starve I guess) and blockaded the entire planet. Out here in the sticks things aren't so bad (there are more supplies and fewer people) but in the major cities the news from the QEC sounds dire. Mexico City is the worst affected, reports indicate it fell under siege at the beginning of the war. That they've held out this long is impressive but stories of widespread starvation are a stark warning to any other cities thinking of following suit. As I said our own food supplies are holding up for the time being but sooner or later we'll have to move back into the cities to scavenge what we can.

Weapons are another story, we have a few spares that we brought with us (when we took inventory, I heard one guy had actually loaded himself up with enough guns to supply a small armory) but nothing like enough for all the new volunteers. Daniels is downstairs right now training some of the recruits in hand to hand combat but I'm not sure how much good that'll do against Reapers. Most of the weapons in the base ended up on shuttles that reached the rendezvous in Seattle. Until we can get over there we'll have to make do with what we've got.

After the meeting Xi Chan came to let me know he'd found a suitable communication platform for the QEC and managed to make contact with Seattle. The connection wasn't brilliant but I was pleased to see Colonel Travis come up on the display.

"It's good to see you sir, when your shuttle didn't arrive we feared the worst."

"We're all fine over here so long as no Reapers show up so we should keep this brief. Report on your position Colonel, is it secure?"

"For the moment yes, the city is mostly deserted but the Reapers have these new flying units-"

"That's what happened to our shuttle, any idea what they might be?"

"They look kind of like Harvesters, y'know those huge flying beasts from Tuchanka?"

"I thought the Reapers only chose sapient lifeforms to turn into soldiers?"

"Either they've always been able to do both or this is a change in their behavior."

"Well whichever it may be I just hope they never figure out how to convert Thresher Maws."

The Colonel paled at the thought, frankly I don't blame her. I really, really hope they never learn how to convert Thresher Maws.

"How are the techs getting along with the entanglement device?"

"They say they've managed to crack the codes for the Fifth Fleet, we were just about to test it when we received your transmission."

"Can you patch me through?"

"We'll try Admiral."

The line went dead and a few minutes later a blurry figure appeared on the platform. The distortion was so bad I couldn't make out who it was.

"Hello this is Admiral Anderson do you copy?"

There was some indistinct sounds coming through, mostly covered by static but then a small snippet managed to reach us.

"- don't have time for this sh-"

I smiled, it was Admiral Hackett's voice for sure, I turned to Xi Chan.

"Anything you can do to clear this up a little?"

"I'm working on it, keep trying to speak to him Admiral."

"Admiral Hackett, this is Admiral Anderson on Earth, I repeat this is Admiral Anderson, do you copy?"

"Anderson? Well I'll be damned, you're st-... Alive. Always knew you were a tough son of -..."

The quality finally improved and I was able to see him. I dismissed Xi Chan, thanking him for his work before turning my attention to the projection.

"It's good to hear your voice Admiral, what's the situation up there?"

"Not good. We're trying to engage the Reapers in every theater of war they enter but to be honest we're really only delaying the inevitable."

"Councilor Udina mentioned something about a weapon that could defeat the Reapers?"

"Shepard managed to recover the blueprints for the weapon from the Prothean Archives on Mars. We've just begun construction of what we're calling 'Project Crucible' but the designs are massive in scope. Realistically it's going to take some time for us to get the job done."

"Just between ourselves, do you think it'll work?"

"I can't say for sure but from what we've learned the Protheans poured most of their remaining resources into building this thing. They had to have thought it was going to work. And in any case the truth is we don't have another option, at least not one that I can see."

"I know the feeling, we've lost a lot of good people on the ground too. Has there been any word from Commander Shepard?"

"Last I heard the Commander was on Eden Prime."

"Where it all began," I said, remembering the day and sighing.

"It's horrible to think that the colonists rebuilt after the attack from Sovereign and the Geth just to have Reapers come in and tear it all down again."

"I agree with the sentiment although it's actually Cerberus that's taken over the colony. They showed up just after the Reapers rolled right through the system."

"Cerberus? What the hell would they want with a human colony?"

"We're not entirely sure, we think they might be looking for something."

I shook my head.

"Cerberus never seem to do anything that's clear cut or simple. To be honest I'm getting tired of endlessly playing catch up with them. We need to find a way to get some solid intel on what they're planning. Be one step ahead of them for a change."

"What're you thinking?"

"That I'd be surprised if there weren't at least some Cerberus operatives still active on Earth before the invasion. Maybe some of their financial backers as well. Since we're all stuck down here maybe I can do you a favor and round some up for questioning."

"I like it, I'll take any intel on their plans I can get."

"Send me all the intel we have on Cerberus. I'll chase up as many leads as I can."

"You've got it. In the meantime is there anything more the Alliance can do to help the people back on Earth?"

"Just keep fighting the Reapers Admiral. If you give them a tougher fight out there it might just take some of the heat off of Earth."

"You can count on it but I was thinking we could look at an extraction plan to try and get you off-world."

"My place is here, maybe I can't destroy the Reapers from down here but I can help keep the civilians safe. Although that said..."

"What is it Admiral?"

"There might be one more thing you can do for us."

I asked Hackett for the decryption codes for the QEC. We've already unlocked dozens more active channels since then. At the moment the priority is for the few remaining QEC communicators left on Earth. We've finally managed to start making contact with other countries around the world. Some of the communicators have been destroyed, buried under rubble or lost but every so often we get a response. I address each person we make contact with personally. Sometimes (well once or twice) it's the person originally intended to have access but more often than not it's a civilian or common soldier that answers.

I'm not discouraged by these setbacks. Even if the person I speak to is alone and thousands of miles away, I can still help to reassure them, to advise them on how to survive and find others out there. Eventually this communication network might be the backbone of a resistance network spanning the globe. If we can coordinate ourselves we'll find a way to keep resisting the Reapers to the bitter end. But for now it's a case of trying to get these communicators into the hands of people ready to lead their own resistance cell.

The day wore on and I stayed at the communicator, taking call after call to people around the world. Some I spoke to several times, helping them when they needed advise or guidance. Soon we had more calls coming to us than we were sending out but I was glad to be doing it. People needed reassurance, they needed answers (many didn't really know what was going on, several had never heard of the Reapers at all) and they all wanted was someone who could tell them how to move forward: where to go, what to do and how to survive.

I would also receive a few messages from outside the Sol system. Mostly it was requests for advise based on my past experience of the Reapers. There wasn't much I could do (how do you advise on beating something as strong as a Reaper afterall?) but I did my best and in exchange was able to slowly build up a picture of the war from what I was told.

The Terminus Systems are in shambles. Not overrun (yet) but with Omega captured by Cerberus and Illium now under siege by Reapers there is no leadership to direct a counterattack. The Turians are still preventing the Reapers from gaining full control of their space but there are fears they might soon abandon their protectorate race the Volus in order to better defend their own territory. The Asari and Salarians are keeping the Reapers at bay for the time being but they've still been forced to evacuate several colonies on their borders. As for the Alliance, well we're still in the fight but the enemy is picking off our colonies one by one. Despite the bad news I stuck with it into the small hours of the morning until thankfully I received a call from the Colonel volunteering to take over.

I was too tired to write anything that day but I found sleep impossible. When doubt takes hold of you it doesn't let go easily. Everything was going as well as I could've hoped for at this point: we'd made contact with survivors around the world, hundreds of people were volunteering to help out here. But I was, I am afraid that another Vancouver could still happen. The Reapers have changed the rules as I used to understand them and I can't guarantee anyone's safety any more. There are no lines of defense they can't breach, no where we can go that they can't get to. In all the wars and missions I've ever fought I've never felt so powerless to protect those under my command.

It's morning now and I have another day of sitting at the communicator trying to advise people ahead of me. As much as I appreciate how important this is I think I'll have to find an excuse to leave soon or I'll go stir crazy. Maybe I'll join one of the supply runs, should give me something interesting to write about (y'know, assuming I don't get eaten by a Harvester or something).


	12. Log 10

Log 10

Date: 15TH OCT 2186

Location: WASHINGTON, USA

"Do we have any idea what it was?"

"Our analysis think it might be the remains of the Turian 18th flotilla but we were unable find any definitive confirmation in the debris field."

"Goddamn it. Have you informed the Turian Primarch yet?"

"Not yet. Last time we spoke he was still worried about his son being out of contact on deployment on Tuchanka. I might spare him the bad news until he makes it back safely."

"Agreed. Thanks for the update Admiral but we're moving out in the next hour so I'd better let you go."

"Understood. Take care of yourself out there Anderson, we're still counting on you to protect Earth. Hackett out."

I shook my head, the only thing that scares me more than the state of Earth right now is the state of the rest of the galaxy. I'd spent a whole week with that communicator in the end before I managed to arrange to head out to visit our forces in the city. We've made a lot of progress in that time, we're now able to communicate with about thirty different cities (some indirectly) around the world. So far, talking is just about the only thing we can do though. Most of our contacts are civilians not soldiers and given the strength of the enemy we're advising them to avoid confrontation wherever possible. But no matter how much progress we make it was still frustrating to be stuck in that makeshift office day after day.

I resigned from the council because I prefer the action of being a front line soldier (well okay, I prefer the action most of the time. I'd probably pass on the gunshot and stab wounds, not to mention the punctured lung). Doing this work isn't nearly as bad as what I faced as a member of the Council (no political BS getting in the way) but I don't intend on hiding myself away for the entire war. In any case many of our resistance fighters (actually most) are civilians and don't really know me for my track record with the military beyond some sketchy details. To earn their trust I have to fight along side them as an equal (Well it's a really good excuse to get me out of the base at any rate).

I've always believed in leading by example but even I was surprised by the effect it had in motivating these people. An hour before we were set to leave Mr. Stevenson pulled me aside to talk to me about something.

"I need to speak with you Admiral, it's urgent."

"Of course but you'll have to hurry, I have to leave in an hour."

We went up to my makeshift office so that we could speak in private, already I could see that something had him really concerned.

"What's happened?"

"Will's signed up to join your resistance group," Jeff said flatly.

There was a moment's silence after that. Thinking back to the excitable young man I had spoken with just a few days earlier I wasn't in the least bit surprised that he had decided to join up. I opened my mouth to speak (I'm still not sure if I was planning on defending Will's decision or promising not to accept his application) when Jeff interrupted me.

"Will it make any difference?"

"What?" (A valid question at the time, his voice was barely more than a choked whisper).

"Will... Will signing up make any difference to whether these Reaper things try... Try to-"

He cut himself off there, his voice was hoarse, his eyes wide and staring. I understood exactly what he was going through. It was hard for me in the first days of the war, imagining what might happen to my own son Jason. I've been very lucky in that regard, Udina let me know Jason was safe when I first contacted him (he's working on the crucible project as an engineer with his mother). I could never imagine what it would like to have him joining the military, let alone having to ask about the possibility of him being killed by aliens.

"I- I won't lie to you Mr Stevenson. The Reapers are coming for all of us, armed or not. It's your decision in the end, all I can do is promise to protect him for as long as I am able."

Jeff shook his head. "No you're wrong, it's his decision and he's made it. And I've made mine, I'm signing up to join your resistance but there's one condition."

"What's that?"

"Wherever you send my son, you have to send me too. I don't care what the risks are I want to be there to keep him safe."

My first thought was to refuse him, in a normal military a request like that wouldn't even be considered. But the regular military were either gone or dead and any or all of us could be dead hours from now if we were unlucky. I decided we would throw out the old rule book and just be grateful for any support we could get.

"We're going to go back to the city to grab some supplies, be ready to leave with us and Will in the next half hour and then report back to me."

"Yes sir"

"Oh and Mr. Stevenson?"

"Yes?"

"I want to make you a promise now that I'll do everything in my power to keep your family safe."

Since we couldn't risk taking any of the vehicles in case we were seen by the Reapers (we'd received word they'd just transmitted a message through what remained of Earth's communication network forbidding the use of any transportation on pain of well... vaporization) we were stuck on foot. I wanted to leave the trained soldiers behind to protect the village so my personal escort consisted of Daniels (who never seems to leave my side), Jeff, Will and two more civilian volunteers. Most of our actual soldiers had been deployed to scout a wide area around our current base. If the Reapers tried to move in we needed to be ready to evacuate villages and keep ourselves one step ahead.

We headed south, keeping to the trees to avoid risking contact with the enemy. We were managing to stay out of their way quite successfully (we could still hear one or two Reapers in the distance though) but my 'squad' was clearly very jumpy. Jeff, Will and the others had been brave to sign up but out here their inexperienced showed. I was glad to have Daniels with me, when I first met him I admit I'd had my doubts that he'd hold up if things got heavy, but he'd held his own well in Vancouver and I felt I could rely on him if trouble started. Of the others Jeff was probably baring up best, he was far from a trained soldier but at least he wasn't jumping at his own shadow.

As for the others? I was reminded of the shuttle when I was flown into the First Contact War. In many ways the situation wasn't so different to this one. Back then we were facing our first encounter with an alien species and all we knew was that they weren't friendly. We were all more than a little jumpy on that shuttle I can tell you, we were flying into the unknown about to take on a challenge bigger than we'd ever expected to face. A good description of how these people were feeling, soldier and civilian and not without good reason. The Reapers had killed anyone that had ventured out this far before we arrived. I recalled that last time I cracked some feeble joke to ease the tension and it seemed to work reasonably well. I wondered if it might be possible to try the same approach here.

I looked over to Will, probably the most anxious of the group, who was nervously scanning the treeline as we walked along.

"How're you doing son?"

"Fine sir, no problems to report."

"I think we can drop the 'sir' for the time being son, we've got a long march a head of us."

"Yes sir- I mean of course,"

"How's your mother handling, well... All of this? Is she okay with you joining up with us?"

"She cried for a while when I first said I was signing up, but I think she understands that we have to do this. I'm more worried about her and everyone else back at the village."

"I've left my best people guarding that place, don't worry everyone there will be kept safe." I said praying that I wouldn't be made a liar of.

"You'll see her soon and you'll have plenty of stories to tell her when we get back."

"I hope so, she said she was going to make a fruitcake for us when we get back."

The simplicity of this charmed me and remembering how helpful a bad joke had been in the past I replied.

"Shhh, not so loud. That's our new secret weapon against the Reapers."

Well that one managed to raise a few smiles, even a laugh or two from the rest of the group. I'd like to say it wasn't one of my better jokes but comedy's never been my strong suit. I used to get far more groans from my squad back in the day than anything else but at least it helped to help everyone relax a little.

What didn't help were the areas of cleared forest, lines burned across our path where Reaper fire had cut a swath through the trees at some point. These gaps were never very wide so we weren't out of cover for long but the scale of the destruction made me realize I might have to make the squad endure a few more of my jokes.

After ten hours of marching we decided to make camp for the night. There's not much I can say about that night apart from how much the squad hated it. We couldn't afford to use artificial light of any kind for fear of attracting the Reaper's attention and visibility was near zero. If the enemy did find us the first we would know about it would be a scream from our scout as he was confronted with a creature of nightmares in the pitch darkness. As for myself, much as I didn't want to admit it, I guess I'd spent too long in warmer, drier accommodation while playing politician on the Citadel. I'd roughed it more times than I could count but that'd been a fair while ago now. I put on a brave face for my squad but I think I'll be handling the hotel bookings next time.

The next day we set off early, I could tell the men were thinking that the sooner we got going the sooner they'd be able to sleep in a building again. That kind of attitude would never be accepted in trained soldiers but they're weren't too many complaints about last night so I let the matter rest. As we progressed we came across the signs of Reaper fire more frequently and I began to wonder who the Reapers might've been shooting at. It was hard to tell but since there was nothing obvious worth firing at around here but they may have been aiming at a moving target like a skycar or a shuttle that had been trying to escape the planet. I briefly paused to offer up a small prayer, hoping that whoever the intended target was they had managed to get away.

Unfortunately as we reached the next clearing it became obvious that they hadn't. This time the clearing was far larger than any we had come across so far, at least 150 meters across. Unlike previous clearing, there were no scorch marks, no charred ground. The area had simply been flattened as if someone had driven a couple dozen bulldozers straight through it. I turned to look at Will who was examining the scene.

"What do you make of it son?"

"Um, sir?"

"Just relax, a soldier needs to be able to assess a situation quickly, what do you think happened here?"

"Well this can't be from weapons fire, nothing here is even singed. Maybe a Reaper ship tried to land here?"

"I'd say something tried to land here, but not a Reaper they use their tripod like legs to support them when they land. No I think it was one of our ships that landed here, though I suspect the technical term for this sort of landing is called a 'crash'."

"You think an Alliance ship crashed through here? Think they might still be around?"

"We don't know it's an Alliance ship for certain yet but we should definitely check it out. Daniels?"

"Yes sir?"

"Why don't you go on ahead and scout it out for us? Be careful and don't approach them until you've reported back. Everyone else take five, we've been marching half the morning already."

"Aye sir"

Daniels headed off in the direction we thought the ship had been going when it crashed and soon disappeared out of sight. While he was gone I consulted the map, we had done about 55 klicks of our journey so far, it was still another 40 (at least one more days march) to reach our destination but we were getting close to more urban areas which might provide us with some cover if we needed it. Not sure of what we would be facing in the next few minutes, all I could do was plan routes that might keep us out of danger.

Daniels returned a few minutes later clearly out of breath.

"You were right sir, there is a crashed ship up ahead, an Asari one."

"Asari here? You're certain?"

"It's definitely an Asari vessel but I can't confirm who might be inside. The ship's been surrounded by Reaper forces who are trying to break in."

"Did you see any sign of the crew?"

"I saw some return gunfire coming from inside the ship, no way of knowing if it's the crew or just automated turrets. I couldn't see very clearly from where I was but I couldn't get any closer without alerting the Reapers. Sir I think we should move on quickly."

"If the Reapers just wanted to kill those people they could've opened fire on the ship from orbit."

"Judging from the state of the ship I'd say they did shoot it down sir."

"Exactly, they shot it down rather than destroy it outright. And now they're wasting ground troops, trying to take the ship instead of blowing it away. I think that there's something or someone on that ship that the Reapers believe to be strategically significant."

I paused for a few moments weighing the options. Our small squad was far from equipped for dealing with something like this but we were now miles from both our base at Seattle and the volunteer center at Welcome. If we left then every single person on that ship would die before we could send reinforcements and the Reapers would get whatever they were after on the ship.

"Look" I said, trying to delay the moment of decision "What was the strength of the Reaper forces?"

"They had a small army in place, several large groups entrenched in various positions around the perimeter of the ship, I think they're testing the ship defenses, looking for a weak point."

"Can you get us close enough to see what's going on without being spotted?"

"Sir, I'm not sure how we'll be able to take on such a large army-"

"I haven't made that call yet, Private we're just gathering intel. Now then, lead the way soldier."

"Yes sir."

Daniels led us though the trees, closer to the crashed ship. The ship was smaller than I had expected, not a warship by any means in fact it didn't even look like a military ship. This was getting weirder and weirder, I couldn't imagine what an Asari transport would be doing heading to Earth weeks after the Sol system had been declared unsafe.

There was as Daniels had said, several large groups of Reaper footsoldiers around the quite an army but more than we could take on in a fair fight. Mostly the group was made up of Cannibals and Husks with a few Marauders thrown in just to make things worse. No sign of any Brutes or Harvesters thankfully but there was something new.

"Daniels do you see those things down there?"

"Yeah I saw them before, definitely a new kind of Reaper footsoldier but no idea where this one came from..."

"Looks like some kind of insect species but heavily mutated. Luckily they don't look like they can be very mobile."

"No but still, see the cannons mounted on that one? I think they're meant to be some kind of walking tank."

"OK I think I might have a plan but it won't be easy and I'll have to rely on all of you to play your part. I wouldn't normally say this, but if any of you have doubts say so now. If you're not all fully committed to this we should walk away now."

"We're not leaving these people to die here Admiral," said one of the quieter members of the group, Jake Langmer I think his name was. There was a general nodding of heads indicating the group's agreement.

"Alright then, I'm taking Mr Stevenson and we need to get to that access hatch over there. To help us make it, Daniels will take everyone else except Will and distract the Reaper group round this side of the ship."

"What? I'm not just staying back while everyone else helps. I'm not a kid!"

"No, not at all. I have a different job for you. I hear you told the recruiters back at Welcome that you used to win gold at your local shooting competitions?"

"Uh, actually only won gold once, mostly just bronze and silver, I just wanted to impress you all."

"That's okay, son. Now I want you up on that ridge over there with your rifle aimed at the ship's drive core."

"Sir? What about all the people inside?"

"Your father and I are going to get them out through that hatch at the back. Hopefully we'll be able to draw the Reapers into the ship and get out ourselves before you blow the ship. If it all goes well we'll escape in the confusion, but if we don't all make it out quick enough you have to blow the ship anyway. There's too many here for you to handle, if it gets bad you blow the ship and run."

Will nodded nervously but didn't say anything.

"Okay let's go."

It took us about five minutes to get everyone in position for our strike. It was hard to tell but it looked like the Reapers may have managed to breach the defenses on the far side of the ship and more of their forces were starting to crowd that area. Unfortunately the group near the entrance we were interested in stayed put, presumably waiting to ambush anyone attempting to escape though the hatch.

I began to crawl through the long grass, inching nearer to the ship with Jeff in tow. We wanted to get as close as possible before the shooting started to minimize the amount of time Daniels would have to hold them off for. As we moved forward slowly, we strained our senses listening for the start of Daniels' attack and our cue to sprint towards the ship. Instead we heard silence, which grew ever more agonizing. If we held this position much longer the Reapers might spot us before the distraction started. Taking a risk I looked up to see Daniels still holding position but it was hard to see why he was hesitating. Reluctantly we pushed onwards, hoping that we'd reach whatever point Daniels had decided was close enough to start his attack but it was starting to get dangerous. I was just contemplating ordering Jeff to head back when Daniels finally launched his attack by lobbing three frag grenades into the enemy's midst.

I looked up again, most of the Reaper troops had turned to fight but there were still two soldiers doing nothing but watching the hatch (Makes sense when you think about it. If the Reapers view their troops as nothing more than tools; then why not have them calmly stand guard while enemy fire rains all around them?) If either of them saw us they'd alert the others and we'd be dead before we made it halfway to the hatch. So we were trapped there, forced to hug the ground while gunfire and explosions thundered around us. I started trying to get closer to the nearest of the guards (knowing it would be a miracle if I managed to take them both out without raising the alarm) when the Cannibal simply disappeared from view. The second guard looked round trying to see what had happened and a shot hit it in the back of the head.

I glanced over my right shoulder and smiled. Will was certainly a fast learner, not to mention a damn good shot. I helped Jeff to his feet and we raced to the ship. Once we were inside I told Jeff to wait by the entrance.

"What? I'm not just here for decoration either you know."

I wondered if one day a Stevenson would actually follow my orders without question but I guess it was to be expected from civilians.

"I need you to secure our escape route. Besides we both know Will won't blow the ship until you get out. Like I said to him, if things start to get bad just get out of here. Don't wait for me any longer than you can afford to."

I set off in the direction I believed the bridge ought to be but it got harder and harder to navigate as I pushed deeper into the ship. With no power, the wide elegant corridors that marked their architecture became vast dark caverns, easy to become lost in. I was forced to grope my way along the outer walls or else risk missing passageways entire. Half blind as I was it was hardly surprising that someone saw me before I saw them.

The first I saw of them was when the sunlight, breaking through a hull breach in the roof, glinted off the weapon they had leveled at my chest. I froze and taking my chances in the fact he didn't look like a Husk I raised. my hands in surrender.

"I'm with the Alliance. We're here to help."

"I see."

The first shock, as he stepped forward into the light was that this was a Drell, an uncommon enough sight in and of itself (their species did not develop space travel as the other races had. Instead a small number of them were rescued and integrated into the galactic community when an ecological disaster threatened their homeworld). But there was more to it than that, he was dressed in filthy rags, so badly torn in places that I could see the bright green skin beneath. He'd obviously managed scrounge up a few pieces of armor from somewhere which provided some protection but also left gaping holes open to attack. Most captivating of all were his large jet black eyes, filled with more venom and suppressed anger than I had ever seen in any member of his kind I'd met before.

He seemed surprised, almost shocked really by my answer but he did at least lower his weapon.

"Anderson? Huh, that was easier than I was expecting."

"What do you mean?"

"She came here looking for you. Sort of. Never believed we'd actually find you in all this mess personally."

"Who? What for?"

"There's no time to explain while we're under siege .How'd you get in here?"

"We've cleared an exit route at the back of the ship, we need to get everyone out of here now."

"That's the Justicar's call. I can take you to her but stay close, this section's crawling with Husks."

At that point I can remember thinking, a Justicar? This just kept getting stranger. Justicars are an ancient order of Asari law enforcers. Don't think of them like regular cops, they're more like a warrior sect sworn to bring justice to the galaxy. Upon joining the order an Asari is required to forsake all worldly possessions (aside from some essentials like amour and weapons)and swears several oaths that bind them into obeying the Justicar Code. The Code is a set of thousands of rules used to determine the actions a Justicar must take in any conceivable situation. Justicars are incredibly rare and almost solely operate within Asari space due to their often severe tactics. Asari revere them greatly but other races would be less likely to accept their sometimes brutal idea of justice. Meeting one on Earth might literally be the last thing I expected.

Much of this went through my head as we ran deeper into the ship. We encountered Husks several times (I was told they'd breached the outer defenses and then scattered throughout the ship) but they were simple enough to defeat in small numbers. Eventually we reached what was left of the bridge which was engulfed in a firefight. The Reapers had swarmed most of the room but several of the crew were still fighting back, using their consoles as cover. We needed to break up this assault as quickly as possible to give us time to retreat so I lobbed two frag grenades into the Reapers midst and ducked behind the nearest cover available, dragging the Drell with me.

The grenades tore a large hole in the enemy and turned all the attackers attention on me. This, as it turned out, was a mistake for them. I heard a shot to my right and turned round in time to see a shotgun wielding Asari vaulting over a console before her last victim (a marauder) had even hit the ground. This I realized must be the Justicar, a suspicion that was confirmed a few moments later when her biotics sent a huge chunk of debris flying across the room. A couple of the Cannibals avoided the projectile, a few of the Husks managed to duck and the rest were flattened, knocked down like bowling pins.

I thought about trying to assist but it simply wasn't necessary. She moved in on the two still standing and drawing a dagger from its sheath on her hip, killed the first with a single stab through the heart. She threw the body at its companion, staggering it and turned to face the Husks who were getting to their feet. Another blast of biotics left the Husks scattered and broken and she finished off the performance by spinning round and blowing the last Cannibal's head off (I hadn't even seen it get back into the fight).

My grenades had cleared a fair number of the enemy to start with but still the feat left little doubt why the Justicar have such a fearsome reputation. More than a dozen enemies had fallen in as many seconds.

"Justicar?"

"My name is Lara T'Ren, you are Admiral Anderson?"

"You know me? Actually nevermind, we need to evacuate everyone right now."

"The Code does not permit me to flee when there are enemies left to-"

"Look" I said speaking quickly as I knew more Reaper troops would arrive soon and desperately wanting to avoid an argument that put me on the wrong side of the Code.

"My team is fighting to hold open an exit route for us. Half of them are volunteer civilians. Innocents."

The Justicar smiled at me briefly.

"Thank you, the Code demands that I must assist."

Speaking into a comm device she called for an immediate retreat and we all started to fall back just as the next wave (Marauders and Husks mostly) broke into the room. A tactical retreat swiftly became a race to escape as the Marauders let loose the Husks to hunt us down. They chased after us shouting and snarling like rapid animals as we ran down the corridors towards the exit.

As the Justicar fell back with her best fighters to hold them off I found myself without a guide. It quickly became clear that the rest of the crew only had a limited knowledge of the ship's layout as well so we all found ourselves in the same dark labyrinth pursued by creatures of nightmare. Once I opened a door only to find half a dozen Husks behind it. They would have killed me then had the other Asari's biotics not forced the door closed again, their combined effort enough to deny entry to the snarling animals on the other side.

Finally we ran into Jeff who was still standing guard near the hatch with two dead Husks at his feet. For a moment I thought he might collapse with relief at the sight of us but I ordered him and the others to get out.

"Once you get outside, don't stop running until you reach the trees, we're gonna blow the ship."

Well that certainly got them moving and I held back with T'Ren (who had joined us eventually) while they climbed through the hatch one by one. It was slower than I liked but we finally got down to just me and the Justicar without incident.

"OK you next, I'll be the last one out and signal Will to blow this thing."

She slid out feet first through the hatch, as she looked back at the last second she cried out.

"Admiral, behind you!"

I turned round quickly to see a Marauder coming round the corner at the end of the passageway. I froze for a moment expecting to be shot at but what actually happened was far worse.

"Assuming direct control."

The creature doubled over in pain and would fall under Harbinger's control within seconds. I decided not to hang around for a chat this time and bolted through the escape hatch. When I got out a couple of the others were still hanging around outside the ship.

"Go, go, run!" I roared at them sprinting away from the ship myself as I signaled Will to blow the damn thing. He hesitated for a while, giving us a chance to get clear and then took the shot. When I asked him about it later on he said he saw a face with two glowing eyes emerging from the hatch just before he took the shot.

The explosion was massive; I didn't see it but I could feel the force and the heat on my back as I ran. I was knocked off my feet by the blast but had to quickly force myself to get up again.

Most of the Reaper forces had been destroyed in the ship as I'd hoped but Daniel's group was still engaging several more that had attacked his position. We snuck up behind this lot, taking them by surprise before they knew what hit them. I turned to face the enemy on the other side of the clearing but those bug things had already gotten into position and were starting to lay down heavy fire on our group. So we ran, into the trees and fled like the devil himself was after us (because he was).

Harbinger was coming.


	13. Log 11

Log 11

Date: 16TH OCT 2186

Location: WASHINGTON STATE, USA

Hours later, long after it had gotten dark we were still in hiding. By this time we were out of the woods (literally speaking if not figuratively) and into more urban areas near what used to be Seattle. It took two hours for Harbinger to arrive on the scene (I guess even evil death robots can have a busy schedule sometimes). Which at least gave us time to put some distance between ourselves and the crash site. We'd managed to get away from that battle but the enemy knew we were still in the area and they were unlikely to get bored and give up the search. Harbinger was swiftly joined by two other Reaper capital ships and three Destroyers which landed on the surface. We've spent our time running from one foxhole to another, trying to stay ahead of the Husks. Before it got dark we saw a flock of Harvesters above us, scanning the area for signs of life.

The cost of the mission had been high, Jake Langmer was killed while under the command of Daniels as part of the distraction team. While escaping the ship Jeff was wounded in the leg. Of the twenty three crew members only eighteen survived long enough to be saved by the rescue attempt. I would like to record here a special commendation for Mr. Langmer. Daniels reported later that he willingly threw himself onto an enemy grenade in order to protect the lives of his fellow soldiers. Like all those lost in this war I wish I had known him better.

I hate to admit it but we're in serious trouble and right now I'm not sure what to do. I hadn't counted on being seen and recognized by Harbinger or the scale of the search it would prompt. With no clear plan, I'm stuck playing a defensive game with the Reapers, reacting to their moves but making none of my own. For the moment we're still making progress towards the bunker in Seattle (only just through, we're making a long detour to get there). At least I've (mostly) managed to find out why the Justicar is here in the first place. We've had plenty of time to talk while hiding from the enemy.

"I came here because the Code demands that I help protect the innocent."

"That's it? Don't get me wrong I appreciate the assist but you ran headfirst into one of the most dangerous places in the galaxy right now."

"When the Code was written no enemy as powerful as the Reapers had ever been imagined much less seen. But the Code is clear, that there is no consideration regarding an enemy of this size or strength does not release us from our Oaths."

"So have the other Justicars come here as well?"

"When the news of this war was first announced many of the order met on Thessia, the first meeting of the Justicar Order in many centuries to discuss the situation."

"You reacted remarkably quickly then. From what I hear many of those on unaffected worlds are still trying to come to terms with what's happening."

"The Justicar Samara had already warned us of what Commander Shepard believed was coming. She confirmed that what she had seen personally during her time as a member of his crew supported his story so we began preparations for what was coming."

"You believed her just like that?"

"She is a Justicar, to lie to us would have been one of the ultimate crimes of our Order and would have meant her death. In any case we knew her to be trustworthy and loyal."

"Still it's just surprising to hear you believed the story so readily. If the Council had taken the same approach we might not be in this mess."

"There is no point in discussing what might have been. A warrior must-"

At this point we had to move on to find another foxhole to hide in, the one we abandoned was overrun by Husks about half an hour later.

"So, you never did tell me what was decided at that meeting."

"I was not able to attend in person but was apprised of its outcome. The Code made it clear that we had to oppose the Reapers and defend those they prey upon. For a while it was suggested that we should stand together in this greatest and possibly final challenge of our Order."

"And?"

"Even if we gathered our full strength in one battle we would be no match against the Reapers. Worse we would offer them an opportunity to destroy the entire Order in a single attack. In any case it is in our nature to fight alone."

Alone? I couldn't help noticing she had arrived with almost two dozen others but I didn't ask about it in case I offended the Justicar.

"Makes sense, so what did you decide to do instead?"

"Our Order was divided into groups, each group would be sent to a different objective but ultimately each Justicar would still fight alone as tradition dictates."

"So where did each group get sent? I assume at least one was Earth?"

"One group was indeed sent to the Sol system, another was sent to Palaven to fight the Reaper occupation there, a third was dispatched throughout the various colony worlds to slow the Reaper advance and the final group, the largest of all remained behind in Asari space to prepare defenses for the expected invasion."

"What about Khar'shan?" I asked referring to the only other occupied home world that Lara hadn't mentioned. She curled her lip at my question, obviously displeased.

"Two Justicars were dispatched to the Batarian homeworld though I argued against it strongly."

"You didn't want them to go there? Why not?"

She stared at me for a moment, her pale blue eyes shining brightly as they reflected the torchlight.

"I was there just a few days ago. Just prior to the invasion in fact and nothing I saw there made me think they deserved our protection. Their regime is evil incarnate, a temple to greed, slavery and thuggish cruelty. I saw every means by which a sentient being could be stripped of hope and dignity. Now that the Reapers have arrived it must be much like the place you humans refer to as hell."

A powerful description although I feared it was likely accurate. Information about the Batarian homeworld was scarce but many suspected it might be like this. That's not to say all Batarians are evil, far from it but the Hegemony was a brutal totalitarian government. One of their most common complaints was that laws banning slavery impinged on the 'cultural rights' of their race. It was sickening but unfortunately (or possibly luckily given the mess it could cause) it wasn't the responsibility of the Alliance to try to change an entire species.

I thought back to the Drell I saw on the ship, dressed in rags.

"Your crew, are they?"

"People I freed from the Batarian homeworld yes. My target was actually the slaver, a warlord with an outstanding warrant for attempted genocide on his head. Unfortunately he was cunning, he engineered a situation where the code demanded I save innocents rather than pursue him. Once I rescued them I realized I would have to keep them with me for the time being. The warlord had made a point of ensuring most of the slaves had nothing left to go back to. A means of discouraging escape and making sure that no one raised the alarm after they were taken."

"So they they couldn't go back home and you... Adopted them?"

"Of course not, Justicars are forbidden from having a family, they are innocents I'm sworn to protect nothing more.

To my mind Lara responded just a little too quickly to that one. Still I'm not bound by the Justicar Code and I certainly don't see any reason to call her out on showing some compassion.

"Well I don't see anything wrong with-, Actually let's get moving again, Harbinger's getting a little too close for comfort."

We moved on in silence trying to find somewhere else to hide. In the darkness it was difficult to pick a safe route and the tension was starting to make all of us jumpy. Eventually we opted for breaking into a nearby house, it felt safer than continuing to blunder around in the dark.

"So how many Justicar's were sent here? I don't see any more among your crew, did they not make it?"

"Each Justicar traveled to this world separately so as the maximize our chances of some of us reaching the surface, twenty eight of us in total. We planned to each land in different countries and begin working against the enemy."

"And you hoped to find me? I'm just guessing because one of your crew recognized me instantly."

"I have a weakness for trying to aid seemingly impossible heroic causes, a trait most Justicar share. When I heard you had chosen to stay behind to protect Earth, I knew where I would try to get to."

"Well I'm honored to have your support Justicar. We can discuss more of the details later, assuming any of us survive the night."

We remained in that house until dawn finally broke over the outskirts of the city but our situation was still as precarious as ever. They hadn't found us yet but their methodical (if slow) search meant that once they reached this position the chances of hiding were nonexistent. We could try to keep moving and stay ahead of the Reapers but I was concerned by the risk of detection each time we were forced to move on. We might get lucky once or twice but we would only have to be unlucky once to get us all killed, or worse captured.

"We need a plan for getting out of here, options?"

I looked around the room but there were no replies at first.

"There might be something assuming it's still there."

"What is it Daniels?"

"Almost all the Cerberus equipment confiscated from the Normandy was brought to Vancouver for analysis, except for one item that was brought to a facility about a mile from here. Assuming that its still standing of course."

"We're still a few miles from the main city, there's a fair chance it was outside the blast radius, what are we looking for?"

"The M-44 Hammerhead prototype."

"What is this 'Hammerhead' of which you speak?" asked Lara.

"An armored vehicle designed and built by Cerberus. Much faster and more maneuverable than a Mako but it sacrifices amour to achieve it." I explained.

"The speed might be more use than amour against a Reaper but we'd never make it far before they caught us."

"But I might be able to draw them away from you."

A silence fell over the whole group at this moment.

"I can't allow you to do that Daniels, I made the call on this mission, I caused this mess. I won't let you throw your life away for that mistake."

"It was the right call to make, you saved eighteen lives. Not to mention protecting the locations of the other Justicar on Earth if they had captured Lara."

"I would never betray my sisters like that," said Lara.

"Remind me to tell you about indoctrination sometime," I muttered.

"Daniels, if you try this you will die, do you understand that? Or you'll be turned into one of those monsters and sent against us."

"I know that but if I don't then we might all end up like that. If I take the Hammerhead out and drive away at full speed the Reapers might assume its an attempt to get the key members of the team to safety and come after me. That'll give you enough time to get away and the Reapers will back to square one. Besides if we don't shake them now we'd only wind up leading them to the Colonel's front door."

"He has a point Admiral," said Lara.

I sighed, admittedly Daniels plan was sensible (in that it would achieve its goal of saving the rest of us) and he was right that if the Reapers kept this up there was a real risk of our death or capture (and if captured we'd expose the resistance and Justicar Order).

"We'll head for that location. If no one else has any better ideas by the time we get there then we'll draw lots to decide who is going to pilot the Hammerhead."

We headed out in silence, each contemplating the sacrifice that lay ahead of us. For my part I wrestled with the idea of insisting that I pilot the thing myself. I knew it was madness, that the whole plan had been designed to keep myself and Lara out of enemy hands and that to risk that to avoid losing another soldier would be selfish. At the same time I knew I was the only one (aside from Lara) who might be able to pull this off and live to tell the tale. If I could get their attention, get far enough away and then ditch the Hammerhead and go into hiding? Not completely impossible but the odds were against it. Giving up on this I settled in for the grim march to the Alliance R&D lab where the Hammerhead had been stored.

An officer, any officer has to tell themselves that the life of every person under their command is equal. It's one of the first rules we're taught and the most important. It's one of the things that makes it so difficult for an officer to form any sort of relationship with their men. You can talk about how we can't afford to be one of them. That we have to stand apart to retain respect but the main reason is so that we don't have to look a friend in the eye before ordering them to their deaths. In this instance I wasn't ordering Daniels to do anything but I knew it would haunt me just as much. I understood that this needed to happen but being older and wiser didn't make me any happier about it, in truth it just hurt all the more.

We reached the base without meeting any resistance but our pursuers were catching up behind us. I figured at our current pace we wouldn't have long to get this done. The base itself was severely damaged, the door had been torn wide open, the walls were pockmarked with bullet holes and the area was littered with corpses (only Reaper troops thankfully, although I dread to think what was done with the human casualties). The base had either been abandoned or its entire garrison had been wiped out. For a moment I wondered if we had had a wasted trip but as we got inside it was clear the Reapers hadn't stopped long enough to pick the place clean of supplies. There were ammo crates and weapons available, hopefully that also meant the Hammerhead would be here somewhere too.

But useful supplies weren't the only thing the men and women here had left behind. As I continued to look around I saw plenty of small hints about their lives. The labs were spotlessly clean but the cafeteria was a mess, the sides strewn with empty beer cans and discarded takeaway meals. On one of the lockers there was a post it note from someone named Steve asking Andrew if he wanted to grab a drink at the bar that night. I wondered for a moment if they had actually gone and if either one of them was still alive.

"It's still here," I heard someone call out.

"Make sure it's still operational or it'll be a really short ride for whoever ends I'm driving this thing."

"What about the rest of us?"

"We'll give the distraction enough time to draw the Reapers away and then we'll make a break for the main resistance base as planned."

"Are you sure we should risk heading there, what if we lead the Reapers straight to it?"

"If the Reapers spot us, we'll all be dead or captured long before we get anywhere near the base. If this distraction is going to have any effect at all then we need to get far away from here quickly and disappear for several days. It's the only way the hunt will get called off."

At that point there was a massive explosion nearby. We all rushed to the windows to see Harbinger had just blown something up (a refueling station I think from the noise) and enemy troops were moving in to search the nearby streets. At this point I just assumed that we'd had it. I thought we were just moments away from being killed or captured. We watched the Reaper troops patrolling, trying to keep them all in sight so we could work out our escape route.

We never noticed that Daniels had left until we heard a crash as the Hammerhead smashed its way out the side of the building in a shower of bricks and mortar. The Reaper soldiers reacted quickly and opened fire on it but despite being useless against actual Reapers the amour could withstand small arms fire for a while. And apparently no one had informed the Reaper troops that it was equipped with heat-seeking missiles. The first barrage tore through the enemy ranks and drove them into a swift retreat. Then Harbinger came forward, it's first shot barely missing Daniels. He didn't hang about to wait for a second shot. Instead driving off like a bat out of hell, he pushed the Hammerhead to its limits to try and stay ahead of the incoming fire.

We watched as it disappeared into the distance, pursued by that hulking death machine and an entourage of Harvesters. Daniels only chance now was that Harbinger wouldn't risk a direct shot as it still seemingly believed I was aboard the vehicle.

Finally we had a chance to make our escape and so with a final thank you to Daniels, we ran.


	14. Log 12

Log 12

Date: 17TH OCT 2186

Location: SEATTLE RUINS, WASHINGTON, USA

We managed to reach our base in Seattle without being spotted again. As we got closer to the center of the city we could see the scale of the devastation. For several square miles every single building and structure, anything at all in fact had been destroyed,. All that's left is a giant hole in the ground where the city once stood. That was the purpose of choosing this area as a base of operations, there was no reason for the Reapers to return here. No buildings left to destroy, no soldiers left to fight, no people left to harvest or so we want them to think.

It also reminded us that the losses we'd suffered in the last few days were nothing compared to what the Reapers were doing across the galaxy every day. These monsters, these senseless killing machines are burning our civilization, wiping it out wholesale. And it's not just out there either but on our streets, our homes. Just a few minutes ago I was told that three cities (Cairo, Hong Kong and Pune) have stopped checking in on the QEC, we have heard from them in over forty eight hours so at this stage we don't expect to. I often feel overwhelmed by the scale of this attack; the sheer number of wasted lives. Sometimes when I wake up I get a few blissful seconds before I remember the war and that virtually everyone I know might already be dead. I'm really not sure how I manage to carry on in those moments.

Daniels is just the latest casualty, one I deeply regret but who knows if anyone outside the small group I now interact with is still alive? Everyone I know off world now lives in limbo; the next report could easily be the one announcing their death so they are all ghosts to me. It's the not knowing, that's the worst part and not just the not knowing if loved ones are safe (though that hurts the most) but not knowing why this is happening. I think about that question a lot, what reason the Reapers might have for this brutal slaughter. I wrack my brains trying to find some motive for their actions in case in might lead to some way of ending all this but it just leaves me with a headache.

Still our fight is not hopeless and even the darkest night eventually ends. When we finally reached the base and I saw the Colonel, Xi Chan's team and dozens of others I remembered from the Vancouver bunker I felt that for the moment I'd finally reached the dawn. Once my squad and the Justicar's crew were settled in I went to speak with the Colonel again.

"Seems like a lifetime since Vancouver. How've you been holding up here?"

"For the most part it's been quiet. Aside from some local reconnaissance we've kept a low profile and the Reapers have left us alone. But my men aren't too happy about staying out of the fight for so long."

"Don't worry, I wasn't planning on suggesting we give up the fight entirely. We still need to slow the Reapers down."

"Actually I was planning something along those lines sir."

"I hope it's nothing like the General's plan, I think we've had enough suicide missions for one war."

"If we hadn't been betrayed then we-" Travis started to say.

"Colonel even if we hadn't been betrayed the Reapers would still have overwhelmed the compound. They must have been planning that offensive for days."

"If they could have beaten us before then why didn't they?"

"They wanted us to draw all the resistance in the area into one place. It actually made it easier for them to take the rest of the city."

"You think they had that all planned out?"

"Don't underestimate the Reapers again Colonel, ever. From the outset of this war that was our biggest mistake, even I made it."

"You were the one that warned us not to attack them."

"But I still made the same error as everyone else. I was so focused on their size and power that I forgot just how intelligent they really are. They've harvested this galaxy hundreds of times before our civilization ever existed and every move they make is carefully calculated to achieve that end more efficiently."

"Are you saying it's hopeless?"

"I've never said that and I never will, I'll fight the Reapers with my dying breath if I have to. Our job is simple, to acknowledge the enemy's full strength and to never stop trying to find a way for us to survive that enemy, even if it's just for one more day."

"And what are we holding out for? They'll still win in the end." I could see a sense of hopelessness in her eyes, one I recognized all too well. I gripped her shoulder and looked her straight in the eye.

"There's still a chance if we hold out long enough. I can't tell you what it is, that has to remain a secret. But believe me soldier there is still hope left, I promise you that."

She closed her eyes for a few moments, taking a deep breath but when she looked at me again it was with steely determination.

"Then we hold out, no matter how long it takes."

I nodded, I didn't blame the Colonel in the least for her attitude towards the Reapers so far. That was the fault of the Alliance Parliament and Council dismissing the warnings instead of telling their people what to expect. I was pleased to see that ultimately she was a soldier right to the end. It's exactly the kind of determination we would need if we were going to win.

"Thank you for your support Travis, your work in securing this base has been invaluable."

"Honestly it was nothing sir."

"I mean it, without someone I could count on stationed at this base I would've had to come straight here personally. Without you they'd be no resistance in Deming, I simply wouldn't have had the time to set it up."

"Thank you sir."

"I'd like you to call a full officer briefing for tomorrow morning and please let the Justicar know that I'd like her to attend. I'll share everything I can about the Reapers and then I'll want to hear the plan you mentioned."

"Yes sir, I'll start making the arrangements immediately, is there anything else you need?"

"I'll need access to the QEC device if possible."

"Of course sir, it will be made available to you."

"Dismissed Colonel."

After she left I reflected that away from the the domineering influence of General Coberg, Travis was an outstanding, if slightly nervous officer. I didn't exactly have her service record to hand but I suspected she'd served under Coberg's command for a substantial proportion of her military career. Most likely the General's leadership style put discipline ahead of self-reliance. Not exactly uncommon for a military that did no actual fighting but not ideal when facing the unfamiliar (like an invasion of flying death machines).

It would take time for Travis to completely shake this training off but I think being given her own command has begun to alter her perspective. Hopefully now that we've put the internal politics aside we can focus on our war with the Reapers. When I first arrived at the base I feared it would be like being back in Vancouver again but my fears have been allayed by the level heads in charge here. Even so there's still that concern about who the indoctrinated agent in Vancouver might've been. I'd really like to be able to trust the Colonel completely but with Daniels dead she is now the only person who had direct access to that communication array who hasn't been killed by the Reapers (other than myself obviously).

Later on I did get access to the comms and I was able to contact Commander Shepard for the first time since the start of the war. Shepard is still working on uniting the Council races in the fight against the Reapers despite substantial setbacks. The Council itself basically denied him outright which is predictable as ever. Just as Udina said the Commander decided the best way to proceed was to appeal directly to the leaders of each race and held a summit to achieve exactly that.

The Turian Primarch, Salarian Dalatrass and the leader of one of the most powerful Krogan clans (Urdnot Wrex, an old friend of Shepard's) all met with him aboard the Normandy. Unfortunately the meeting went much as expected with the Krogan Rebellions already dragged up within the first few minutes of the meeting as I heard it told. For once it was the Salarians and not the Turians who were taking the stronger stance against the Krogan. I guess that shouldn't be surprising given how bad things are on Palaven. By comparison the Salarians are much better off, Sur'kesh hasn't even been hit yet so they're far less willing to consider an alliance with their former enemy.

I have to admit I'm still disappointed at that. Salarians are known for their reliance on their intelligence networks. Normally I'd assume they'd gather extensive intel on every member of the negotiation before sitting down at the table. Maybe they overlooked Wrex because of their views of the Krogan in general as brutish thugs, not serious negotiators to contend with. It's a real shame given the huge amount of work Wrex has done in reforming Krogan society and ending the constant tribal wars that plague Tuchanka. If the Salarians had done their homework they might have recognized that they had a progressive leader and potential ally on their hands but instead their arrogance cost the Salarians dearly. Wrex outplayed them skillfully in the negotiations, securing an agreement for a cure to the Krogan Genophage with the blessings of the Alliance and the Turians.

The Genophage is the sterility virus developed by the Salarians to end the Krogan Rebellions. The concept was that the Krogan's natural birth rate was so unsustainable that it had to be limited to ensure Galactic peace. Once modern medicine unshackled them from high mortality rates it caused a population explosions and war inevitably followed. In peacetime it meant they had a constant need for new colony planets to support their population. When the need for territory lead to war it allowed them to replenish their units endlessly, giving them virtually limitless reinforcements. The virus attempted to reduce Krogan fertility to get their population under control and end their ability to wage war. It's one of the most controversial decisions ever made in Galactic history (not one that humanity was involved in I might add, we were still in the middle ages at the time).

The Salarians really weren't happy about the cure but they have so far permitted it to move forward despite offering no other aid of any kind (don't even get me started on that topic, it's not like the Reapers are coming for all of us or anything). The final agreement was that in exchange for the cure the Krogan would provide ground troops to help fight the Reaper forces on Palaven. And if all goes well the Turians will ultimately send their fleets to help retake Earth when the time comes.

'When the time comes' is becoming one of our favorite catchphrases and it terrifies me to think our fates rest on such slim chances. Still I was thrilled to hear the news and to hear all the progress the Commander has made towards achieving that goal. The Normandy is currently in orbit around Tuchanka where they're just making the final adjustments to the cure before they release it into the atmosphere tomorrow. The Reapers are present on the planet but only as a small scouting force for the moment. Only a single Destroyer has been spotted so far although it is guarding the facility that's the best option for dispersing the cure. I hope Shepard will be able to handle that challenge, though he's certainly faced worse before. From what I've heard he's been up against another enemy as well: Cerberus.

It's difficult to make sense of Cerberus's current actions frankly except to write them off as the kind of xenophobic fanatics they've never really seemed to be. Don't get me wrong, I've never approved of Cerberus's actions but in the past they've always been motivated by clear strategic goals. They claimed their focus was on uplifting humanity not attacking aliens.

That has changed with the outbreak of the war. They've recently started making several concentrated attacks against aliens (predominantly Krogan) with no explanation for their actions. Maybe the cure for the Genophage has them spooked but I suspect at least some of them are just taking advantage of the chaos to settle old grudges. You could debate the Illusive Man's motives for weeks if you felt like it but beneath him its a good bet plenty of his subordinates joined out of pure xenophobia.

We did also discuss a little of what's been going on back here on Earth. I could tell that Shepard's curious but so far I've tried to spare him the details (afterall its not like he can help us). Right now we need him focused on the job at hand; building alliances and killing Reapers. So I kept it light, mentioned getting 'a shuttle evac out of Vancouver' but left out the full scale Reaper invasion of the base I had been in at the time.

I am concerned about him as I watch him try to carry the weight of the entire galaxy on his shoulders (minus Earth of course, I like to think that one's on me). As I've said before you are required in principle to treat every soldier under your command as equally important but in reality you will always be closer to certain officers. It was true for Daniels and it is certainly true for Shepard. I'm not one for getting too emotional but after everything he has seen and done, I couldn't possibly be more proud of him. I've asked the Normandy's pilot Joker to keep an eye on him for me. The war will be long and he's likely to get the worst of it.


	15. Log 13

Log 13

Date: 18TH OCT 2186

Location: SEATTLE RUINS, WASHINGTON, USA

"So, where do we begin?"

It was the following day and we'd all gathered in the meeting room. There was a lot to discuss, even after what felt like a lifetime since the invasion began so few of our troops actually understood what they were up against. Also the Colonel had a plan for going back on the offensive in some way. Unlike the General the way she put it didn't bring me out in a cold sweat which was hopefully a good omen. As well as the officers we were joined by the Justicar and a few members of her crew, she had just spoken.

"I think I'll start Ms T'Ren. The general never had any time for briefings about what the Reapers really are. He refused every request I made on the subject but it is time you all knew what you are facing," I said.

"The Reapers are technically classed as cyborgs, creatures that contain both machine and organic aspects."

"We've never seen any indications that the Reapers are partly organic; they seem to be made of metal," The colonel frowned.

"That's certainly how they appear on the outside but we've learned from Shepard that inside each Reaper they store large quantities of genetic material, Harvested from other life forms. We don't know how this material is used but all Reapers brought down throughout the galaxy have been confirmed to contain it. Given that the Reapers have not yet attempted to replace their losses Alliance command believes that due to technical or possibly even 'religious' reasons they will not create more of themselves until they have acquired sufficient genetic material."

"What do you mean by religious reasons?" Asked Lara T'Ren.

"We're not sure what use the material might have so some of the Alliance top brass have theorized the practice might be to do with some belief or hardwired programming. It's impossible to know for certain."

"Have the Alliance or the Council made any progress in understanding Reaper technology?" T'Ren again.

"Virtually none, we've tried examining some of the derelicts but the Reapers often destroy them completely soon after they're killed. We've gotten close to one or two but our scans are often deflected and our scientists have difficulty-"

"I'm sorry Admiral but I have to ask what you meant by 'genetic material'," the Colonel said suddenly.

Ah, I had hoped to avoid that particular topic though I guess it was always inevitable. Of all the aspects of the Reapers this was certainly the most grizzly.

"We call them 'Reapers' for a reason. Even now they're taking people every day and... Harvesting them. You really don't want to know the details," I explained.

"What for?" Someone called out. He wasn't the only one either, I could hear a lot of murmuring in the background. They'd come to learn about their enemy, they hadn't expected to find this.

No matter how well you think you know them the Reapers always find a way to be even more horrifying than you ever imagined I thought to myself. Out loud I said

"Best not think about it, our only focus should be on beating them."

"But what do they want? Why are they doing this?"

"We don't know, we can only guess at their motives. We know that they've come for all of us, every single sentient species but we don't know why. Maybe there really is some great cosmic purpose just as they're always hinting at or maybe they're just insane, out of control AI's. Frankly they could be both for all I care. We can wonder why when all that's left of them is scrap metal."

"Hear, hear" a couple of people said (I had no idea anyone still says that).

We talked about a lot of more dull technical details regarding the Reapers as well. Xi Chan was brought up on the communicator so he could list everything he'd been able to determine about the Reaper foot soldier's technical capabilities from studying their corpses. He was certainly no biologist but he was able to make reasonable guess as to the function of many of their implants and the firepower of their weaponry. I did my best to take it all in, jotting down some notes from time to time but really it was all just a bit over my head. Xi Chan was very erudite, more like a lecturer than an engineer at times but when speaking on topics that interested him he tended to get excited and speak incredibly rapidly (I could see a few of the others frowning as they tried to keep up with his pace). Finally we reached the topic I had been waiting for: indoctrination.

"And now I've been asked to speak on the subject of Reaper indoctrination," Xi Chan was saying.

"Admiral as you have spoken to people with direct experience on this subject would you mind giving a brief introduction before I do my best to explain the techniques used in detail?"

"Of course. I've spoken to Shepard several times on the subject and had one or two personal encounters with those affected. From this I have come to believe indoctrination to be possibly the greatest weapon the Reapers possess." I began.

"It is the means by which they are able to bend any sentient species to their will. Given the large Reaper presence here on Earth we must be especially vigilant against this threat. Exposure to any Reaper technology increases the risk of indoctrination."

"Is there any way to tell if someone's been indoctrinated?"

"It's a slow process, I've heard about cases where the indoctrination makes use of existing beliefs and twists them to it's own desires. The fearful become cowed by them, the ambitious start to believe they can work with the Reapers to gain more power and so on. Sooner or later every subject's train of logic leads them to accept the Reapers as absolute masters," I explained.

"Are there any other signs, anything that might give us an edge?" Asked Colonel Travis.

"Some of the victims have been known to complain of headaches or memory loss. They've talked about significant memory gaps while under the influence which suggests that the signal can affect the subconscious forcing people to obey without even knowing it. But that isn't always the case, as I said, many victims are actually 'convinced' into consciously serving the Reapers."

"It sounds as if the Reapers have very specific control over the process of indoctrinating each individual."

"That's a very interesting point," replied Xi Chan.

"At the moment we're not clear on how the signal can adapt itself to each individual. Some of our scientists believe that it's simply due to the colossal amount of processing power each Reaper possesses that allows it to direct multiple indoctrinations simultaneously without affecting it's other tasks. However some are theorizing that it is some form of interaction between the Reaper signal and the subject's psyche."

"How long does it usually take to indoctrinate someone?"

"As with most things about this process, it varies from subject to subject, for a strong willed subject under standard indoctrination it could anything up to a couple of months. However if necessary Reapers can also indoctrinate people extremely rapidly though this leads to accelerated neural degeneration." Xi Chan added in.

"In those cases the symptoms should be much easier to spot as the indoctrination destroys higher brain functions leaving the subject incapable of performing complex tasks. From our observations the Reapers only use rapid indoctrination to create slaves for manual labour tasks. If a sleeper agent is needed they'll use techniques more similar to those the Admiral described. Sooner or later though all subjects will succumb to the neural degeneration."

"What do we do if someone reports any of these symptoms?"

"We kill them," stated Lara T'Ren in a matter of fact tone.

"Actually that might just discourage people from letting us know if there's an issue." I pointed out.

"For now we'll try rotating any potentially affected soldiers on to patrols that keep them a long way away from any Reaper tech. Maybe limiting their exposure will stop or even reverse the effects. At the very least they'll be isolated and heavily monitored."

"Yes that may work well against the initial stages Admiral but long term exposure to the signal alters the subjects brain so that it can effectively amplify that signal. Essentially if left long enough a person becomes their own personal indoctrination broadcaster impossible for them to escape from," Xi Chan looked around at the sea of aghast faces. "Possibly best to catch issues as early as possible."

"And will it wear off if you stay away from the signal?"

Xi Chan shrugged.

"There's no way to be certain Colonel. Obviously it would seem to be a logical possibility but the only way to be certain will be with actual experimentation."

"Experimentation? On us?"

"Bad choice of words," I said. "But in this case it just means trying to do something that might prevent us from being indoctrinated."

"Now then Colonel, what was your plan for retaliation against the Reapers?"

"After everything we've heard today I'm not sure if-"

"Let's hear it Colonel."

"Of course sir. We've located a Reaper ship about fifteen klicks from here."

I frowned, something about the way she phrased it sounded odd to me.

"A Reaper ship? Is that different to an actual Reaper?"

"We've seen no indication that this one is alive. When we contacted Alliance intelligence they informed us that the enemy does have a number of vessels that are not living Reapers."

This was new information to me, evidently the Colonel had done her homework while I'd been out in the countryside being shot at by Harbinger, I was impressed.

"Have they been able to determine the purpose of these ships?" I asked.

"They've identified two distinct models. One has been clearly identified as a troop transport, dropping foot soldiers across the galaxy."

"And the other?"

"Well until you explained what the Reapers do to the people they capture it was assumed to be some sort of prison ship. Now I guess it must be some kind of- of processing center." She looked distinctly ill as she spoke.

"And you were planning a jailbreak?"

Travis gave a weak smile.

"Something like that, yeah."

"That's not a bad idea actually," I commented. "With enough preparation we might be able to pull it off."

"But given what you said about how the Reapers deal with their prisoners, I mean will there even be anyone left to save?"

"I recall Shepard once managed to pull off a rescue in a similar situation. That was against the Collectors not the Reapers but the principle should be the same."

"So you think we should go for it?"

"We'll need more information, a lot more information if we're going to attempt this but yes. If we turn this opportunity down before we've even looked into it we might as well start giving up this war."

"What are your orders, sir?"

"Send out the scouts and start watching this thing around the clock, I want a complete rundown of the outer defenses and find out how new people are brought into the ship."

"We have a few details already."

"Excellent find out more, then report back. Dismissed."

After the meeting was concluded I reflected on all that had been discussed. Although long overdue I felt the information about our enemy would still prove useful. A recording of the briefing was being sent to every major city we still had contact with, I hoped it would help them continue to resist. We were also sending them the predicted locations of the Asari Justicars on Earth (they shared intended landing sites with each other). We only sent each city the location of the nearest Justicar for security purposes but if those groups could manage to link up we'd be in as strong a position as I could hope for. We still wouldn't be a match for the Reapers but I hoped we'd be strong enough to give them a nasty surprise.

I briefly wondered why the Reapers would park a processing ship close to a city they had already destroyed. My guess was that they wanted a site away from any front line fighting. Destroying the city may have been part of a strategy of creating a 'safe zone' where processing could take place uninterrupted. Well if the Reapers thought that their operations would be safe here they were about to learn that they were badly mistaken.


	16. Log 14

Log 14

Date: 24TH OCT 2186

Location: SEATTLE RUINS, WASHINGTON, USA

It's been a week now since the meeting and I've spent all of it cooped up in this surprisingly small base in Seattle. A necessary precaution until we're certain the Reapers have given up hunting for me. Still it worries me is that I might end up spending the entire war like this. Last time it had only taken one glance to identify me as a priority target. Much as I hate taking a back seat role in our surveillance operations on the processor ship, I've become a liability on such missions.

Everyone now knows that bringing me along risks attracting Harbinger's attention (something we've all become keen to avoid). He, or rather it, has flown overhead a couple times in the past week but according to reports it's also been spotted in cities as far away as Paris or Beijing. Either Harbinger is staying mobile or people are getting jumpy. But I can't really blame them for that; word is spreading about how Harbinger deals with threats to its rule. Stories of how it broke the siege of Mexico City, or how one of its controlled puppets killed a Justicar in single combat (not Lara thankfully) shatter the resistance's confidence. We're all feeling Harbinger hanging over our heads these days, an oppressive force of nature trying to force our submission (in fact in many cities the message is that if you see Harbinger, run).

Still before I get too grim about our situation I should mention we've had some fantastic success stories as well. The resistance is now very much in full flow across the globe. For the moment it's mostly small scale, hit 'n run style attacks. No major victories to report yet but we're making our presence felt. We can't destroy the actual Reapers (apart from our one success in Vancouver) but any and all of their ground troops are fair game; even the massive Brutes and Harvesters can be brought down with enough conventional firepower. In one of our lighter moments we considered creating a medal for anyone who manages to bring down a Marauder being controlled by Harbinger. To Will's great pride we confirmed he would get one for blowing up that ship.

Nevertheless despite the victories the Reapers are still running riot across the whole planet, largely unchecked. I sometimes find myself worrying that by killing the ground troops we're just prompting the Reapers to abduct more citizens to replenish their ranks. Nothing we can do about that one unfortunately, the Reapers will keep making more troops whatever we do. So we fight on, try to free people where we can and take them somewhere safer while we wait until help arrives.

We've made some strong progress on our plans to attack the Reaper processing facility. We've learned (from the Alliance having destroyed a few of them) that the ship itself doesn't have the space to store all the people they're dragging over there. Most of the prisoners are stored in a well concealed (and heavily fortified) compound that the ship is hovering over. I have to admit in many ways I'm relieved. The idea of climbing aboard a Reaper ship even one that isn't alive doesn't appeal to me much. The compound I can deal with, its defenses are strong but at least we know what they are (more or less). I suspect the ship might just have a few more surprises waiting for us.

Even the base itself is a bigger target than anything the resistance has gone up against so far (except for the General who thought he could take on three Reapers at once). Essentially they just took over a convenient building and turned it into a fortress by throwing a large kinetic barrier over the entire structure. Then for good measure they installed a bunch of GARDIAN laser turrets around the perimeter. Such defenses are normally deployed on starships to deal with enemy fighters though their speed and precision would be even deadlier on the ground.

"So a direct assault would probably fail," Lara commented as we discussed the latest field intel.

"Well, yes frankly. We might be able to defeat the garrison defending the base but those mounted guns make that irrelevant. They have enough firepower wipe us out in minutes."

"Could you not arrange some sort of bombardment to destroy these cannons?"

I rubbed my eyes wearily, it had been a very long day already. Most of it had been spent in meetings on the QEC, advising and coordinating resistance attacks around the world. Lara was an experienced warrior undoubtedly (there wasn't anyone in the base that could match her combat skills) but her experience didn't cover this type of assault. Like most Justicar she was used to relying on no one but herself; certainly the order had never tried their hand at waging war before now.

"That kinetic barrier probably wasn't put there for fun. Given that it's Reaper technology I dread to think what we'd need to use just to make a dent in it."

"Have you been able to determine how the barrier is being generated?" Travis asked Xi Chan evidently hoping to move the conversation into more productive areas.

"Yes Colonel I believe I have," replied Xi Chan with justifiable smugness. In a short time the Salarian had become an invaluable member of the resistance. We had access to Alliance scientists via the QEC (when they weren't busy) who might surpass his technical knowledge but what set him apart was the way he looked at a problem. Dealing with an enemy of vastly superior technology he decided not to bother asking if the enemy could do something but to assume that they could and work out how he might attempt it in their shoes (not that they had shoes or even feet come to that).

He often maintained that there were only a limited number of ways of completing a task no matter how advanced your capabilities. For example he pointed out that the concept of weapons involving firing something really fast at a target had existed on Earth for at least the past 10,000 years and was still employed by most advanced race we knew of (the Reapers).

"Take a look at this. There's a particularly good shot we received yesterday," he said swiping through the images sent to us by our scouts. He stopped on an image on the ramp where people entered the ship for processing, it led into the compound.

"Ah here it is, now if I just zoom in... There. See? Power cables of some kind running from the ship, linked to an on-board generator most likely the ship's drive core."

"So we'd need to take out the ship to disable the base defenses?"

"Or infiltrate the compound and sever the connection from that end. I've added a rough sketch of the wiring map to what we know of the layout of the compound."

"How did you know where they would- Oh you just guessed again, right?"

"I estimated the most probable locations, it's really not that complicated once you start thinking like an engineer."

"So assuming we somehow get inside without being killed by the defenses what would it take to disable the base?"

"Given the resilience of most Reaper tech?" Xi Chan shrugged. "Personally I think we'd need a bomb of some kind."

"Is there any other way?" Asked the Colonel "I might have a way in for us but I doubt we'd be allowed to bring explosives with us."

"I'm not sure," Xi Chan admitted. "Without any knowledge of how it's protected all I can say is that we should definitely be looking to overdo it rather than risk coming up short."

"What about a powerful directed mass effect field?" Suggested Lara.

We all turned to face her and she simply shrugged in response.

"My biotics are capable of exerting considerable force. If we cannot smuggle in conventional weapons then surely we must rely on biological ones."

"Would that even work?" I asked.

"As we all know Asari, especially Justicars are incredibly powerful biotics. I believe Lara could exert enough force to cause some serious damage if her powers were sufficiently focused," said Xi Chan thoughtfully.

"Then that just leaves us with finding our way in, Colonel you said you had something?"

"We believe so, yes." Travis nodded. "We've learned that to bring in new prisoners a single human agent accompanied by some Husks for protection heads out to a pacified area. Normally they convince people to go with them willingly with promises of food, shelter and safety from the war."

"So the people just go walking into this slaughterhouse like cattle?" Asked Lara wonderingly.

"Most of them just want to get out of the war if they can, they never signed up to be soldiers but indoctrination undoubtedly plays a part. Not just in the victims,we're certain the agents they send out are indoctrinated as well."

"How does that help us?"

"We've noticed a flaw in their security, one of their agents has received too much exposure to the Reaper indoctrination signal. We think that within the next few weeks he'll regress to a mindless drone, the symptoms are already starting to show."

"Symptoms?"

"Inattentiveness, confusion, memory loss. We managed to observe one of his 'recruiting' sessions which he totally blew because he's so out of it."

I frowned, I could could see where this was going but it was still difficult to believe.

"Are you suggesting that we surrender to him? Let him bring us in?"

"Let him bring in Lara specifically. Given his level of confusion it may well be possible to make him mistake an Asari for a human."

"It's a very risky plan,-" I began but obviously Lara had already made up her mind. She stood up and announce that she would go.

"You realize you'd be walking into enemy hands? If you aren't able to disable the defenses we won't be able to help you get out of there."

"I understand Admiral and I expected no less. Your duty is to ensure the survival of the resistance; mine is to risk my life for the good of others."

Well I still wasn't happy about it but I grumbled my consent to the plan. In all fairness it may well have been one of the only ways to pull this off. The Colonel may have spotted the one drawback of the Reapers ultimate weapon. If used for too long indoctrination turned the targets mind to mush.

Next I had a surprise waiting for me, back at my impromptu office (honestly it was a bookshelf for a desk and a crate to sit on). A note had been left for me saying that Councilor Udina would like to speak to me on the QEC at my earliest convenience. I groaned slightly at that (OK maybe more than slightly). I could feel an already long day about to get much longer but against my better judgment I headed over to the comms room.

When his projection materialized in front of me it was obvious the war was taking a heavy toll on him. Appearance had been everything to this man, I can't remember him ever looking anything less than immaculate (even when I once knocked him out). Now standing in front of me he looked tired, his clothes old and shabby and most of all there was a haunted look in his eyes. Don't get me wrong here, I've not exactly been looking that great myself these days. The apocalypse takes its toll on everyone (occasionally I don't even recognize my own face in the mirror) but I never expected it from Udina.

"Thank you for taking the time to speak with me Admiral, I'm sure you must be busy."

The curt tone still remained intact but I heard more warmth in it than I ever had.

"To what do I owe the pleasure, Councilor?"

Udina sighed and rubbed his eyes out of tiredness.

"I just wanted to hear how the war is going down there on Earth."

Odd, he was still receiving daily data uploads from all the QEC's still on Earth. He probably knew more about the situation here than anyone besides myself but I humored him all the same.

"We're doing our best to hold out here, situation's pretty bleak but everyone's pulling together. We've got a big raid planned for tomorrow."

"I wish I could say the same up here, the Council's still blocking me every chance it gets and our colonies are busy looking out for themselves. But I will find a way to get help for Earth Admiral, I promise you that."

"No one doubts your commitment Councilor, I know you'll find a way if there is one. With the Commander's help of course."

"Shepard? A few years back I would never have believed a single soldier could have more of an impact than a veteran politician. You must be very proud of what he's achieved and how he's achieved it."

"What does that mean?"

"I know what you think of me Anderson, what they all think of me. Udina the politician, always more concerned with his own agenda than what's best for everyone else," he sighed heavily.

"I apologize for not believing you about the Reapers but what else could I have done? Your story always seemed... Impossible."

Udina apologizing for something? I started to worry he might be having a breakdown (well there is a war on, people have hit their limit under far less strain than he's facing). This would clearly need careful handling.

"Listen... Udina, I always understood where you were coming from. You might've grated my nerves sometimes but I appreciated your support while I was Councilor. I know you are doing everything you can, even if I haven't always approved of your methods."

"I just believe in doing everything possible in the defense of humanity. I hope history remembers me for what I tried to do but I imagine you and Shepard will be recorded as the real heroes."

"If you find a way to make sure that there is a history to be recorded, I'll make sure your name is remembered longer than Shepard's."

He gave me a brief smile (I swear I've never seen him smile before, I'm surprised it didn't hurt).

"Thank you Admiral, keep fighting on the ground, I'll do whatever it takes to bring help to you. Udina out."

The image faded and I was left thinking about what he said. We'd always had a long standing rivalry (you might've noticed it) but the war was washing that away. It's funny how difficult situations show you the people you really rely on. Maybe I didn't like Udina but I respected him and I was glad to have him fighting our corner now. Who knows? Maybe he really will be able to bring us in some serious help, god knows we could use it.

After that I finally heard some really good news, although it had given me more than enough worry over the past week. I'd already received a report from Admiral Hackett informing me of what had happened at the Jon Grissom Academy but he'd left out a key detail. Wait I'm getting ahead of myself again, the Jon Grissom Academy is an Alliance run special school for the brightest and best humanity has to offer. Our most gifted minds and promising biotics all got sent there. That is they were until Cerberus attacked the space station looking to press gang our best people into joining their cause. I knew from the report that Commander Shepard had gone in and rescued the students but it didn't mention anything about one the teachers, Kahlee Sanders.

I don't have many friends left that I know are still alive, not for certain anyway but Kahlee was more than that to me. After everything we'd seen and been through together, I often wondered why we'd gone our separate ways. Duty I guess but at that moment, hiding in some cramped bunker on an occupied planet facing death every day? Let's just say I was really hoping I hadn't left it too late. Days went by after the report from Hackett and I heard no word from anyone on the subject, had she been killed in the attack? I knew Shepard would've tried to save everyone but he was just one man whatever people might say about him.

When Shepard finally checked in, I can't say if I felt relieved or terrified at first. But he confirmed what Hackett hadn't, Kahlee had made it out of there alive. She's staying with the students from the Academy for the moment, duty first I guess just like me. And she had a message for me as well, apparently she told Shepard to ask me to 'stay alive'. Hmm, well the same goes for her but I hope I'll find a way of delivering that message face to face, if only through a comm channel. We could all still wind up dead tomorrow but today the war doesn't seem quite as bad as it used to. I'll have to figure out some way to thank Shepard for this one, it means more to me than I can say.


	17. Log 15

Log 15

Date: 25TH OCT 2186

Location: SEATTLE RUINS, WASHINGTON, USA

As I pointed out the next day despite the progress we'd made on our attack plan we still had some issues to figure out. First and foremost of course was how to sneak an Asari into the base. The Reaper agent we planned to fool might be almost brain dead but even then I suspected he might notice the 'human' he was bringing in was blue. Not to mention that she would accompanied by several members of her crew included two other Asari and Karlakh, the Drell I had encountered in their ship. Fortunately they were all humanoid species whose outline more or less matched that of a human but as I said three of them were blue and one (the Drell) was an almost luminescent green.

We did our best on that problem, dressed them in bulky hooded clothes and gloves that would hide most of their skin. To be honest with winter moving in, it wasn't so far off what we'd seen survivors of the destruction of Seattle wearing (well where d'you think we got the clothes anyway? Don't worry we didn't leave anyone without any).

For their faces we did the best we could with some skin tone blusher(easier to get hold of than you might think, there were plenty of abandoned homes in the area). It was fairly hopeless, certainly wouldn't fool any of us for a second but we just had to hope that this agent would be too confused to notice. Luckily we didn't have to worry about his guards. Not exactly sure what the Reapers do to them but Husks don't appear to have any sign of sentience left.

The next issue which I resented slightly was me. When we had drawn up the plan I had announced my intention to personally command the main assault. Again the question of my face potentially causing Harbinger to pay us another visit was raised. I wasn't exactly keen to see another Daniels incident occur myself but at the same time I had no intention of riding out the rest of the war in a basement (I've been referring to it as a 'base' up until now but being honest it is just a basement). I tried arguing that I couldn't lead the resistance effectively if I was stuck down here forever but it was simply pointed out I couldn't lead at all if I was dead or captured.

It did look like I might be consigned to hiding in a basement for a long time but I had an idea. Grumbling with bad grace (I'd gotten pretty grouchy by this point) I picked out a set of armor that included a helmet with a face mask. Given I could barely even see out of the visor I argued that the Reapers were unlikely to identify me. My appearance was subject to quite a lot of scrutiny but eventually everyone had to admit I had a point. We still had a long list of problems but it looked like Harbinger wouldn't be one of them, at least not today.

While I assisted in getting the infiltration team ready I decided I needed to get to know them better. I wanted to understand the men and women we were sending into the Reaper equivalent of a slaughterhouse. I started with the two Asari twins Lara had insisted on bringing along with her. Their names were Siri and Benevola. They were both talented biotics (hence Lara bringing them along) who saw this as their first step in becoming Justicar. They tried to act tough in front of me but it only served to highlight their naivety (from what I've heard the actual training required to become a Justicar might be even worse than what we were sending them into).

Strategically speaking it was only T'Ren's insistence that convinced me they should be on this mission but their story did move me to sympathy. It was the sort of tale that was all too depressingly familiar for anyone born in the harsher part of the galaxy known as the Terminus Systems. Eager to explore the galaxy as many Asari do in their early maiden years they hatched a plan to raise enough credits for their travels. Anywhere else such an innocent desire would have been harmless but Illium only appeared to be less shady than the rest of the Terminus (not much competition there) at first glance. Its laws and practices left the innocent open to easy exploitation just as Siri and Benevola learned when they decided to enter an indentured service contract.

Indentured service contacts are common on Illium and essentially mean selling yourself into slavery, albeit a supposedly tame and cultured slavery. The idea is that your position is enshrined in law, you have a contact and your welfare is protected. In theory it's the same as getting a job only considerably more profitable and with guaranteed job security for the employer. The contracts are common on Illium and are intended to be completely safe, no more than a means of keeping up with more 'aggressive' economies in the Terminus. The reality, as these girls found out is that indentured servants can all too easily slip through the cracks and be lost in the system. As the shady became the outright illegal the girls felt too ashamed of their mistake to go to the authorities. By the time they were being sold to the Batarians there was nothing they could do about it. They refused to talk about what had happened to them when they were with their new owners. Not surprising really, no one ever talked about their slave labor camps except in hushed whispers.

The ship they escaped on, Athame's Tears had actually belonged to their own family. The warlord who captured them had taken it as ransom about a month before. When he failed to release the girls as promised their mother had begged the Justicar to rescue them. Apparently she'd stowed herself away in a transport in order to get there. To any but a Justicar it would have insanely reckless plan (if she was caught the Batarians would have happily destroyed the entire ship just to kill her) but was a standard tactic of the order (as they have no ships of their own). She reached them just as the Reapers began descending on the planet and in the madness they eventually managed to steal back their ship and escape.

When you hear about stuff like this you often ask yourselves why you didn't do more to free those people. While I was Humanity's Councilor, I wrestled with similar questions every single day. I knew that no action we took short of invasion would have any impact on the Batarian's policies. The Alliance was their scapegoat to blame all the issues afflicting their own civilization. Their power rested on not bowing to outsiders on any issue and they were quite happy to let their own people suffer to maintain control.

And if we had instead tried to impose our will militarily the death toll would have been in the millions. I knew that to the Batarians slavery was their way of life; their culture as their government so often said. They would fight us, even the billions of Batarians that suffered under the oppressive rule of the Hegemony. Considering the brutal lengths Batarians are willing to go to to win a war I think occupying Khar'shan would have crippled, maybe even broken the Alliance. But would saying any of this make any difference to the Asari? No they would always curse the fact that they hadn't been rescued sooner. So which do you do? Stand back and watch others suffer or wade in and suffer the casualties? I didn't know the answer but I know I prefer the simplicity of fighting Reapers to trying to deal with that. Maybe if we survive this a new Khar'shan will rise from the ashes freed from its despotic origins. I certainly hope so.

After Lara saved them they explained their whole story and she told them they'd been fools to enter such an agreement. She'd berated them thoroughly for their actions for days before finally relenting. I can understand why she might react that way but dozens of Asari do enter such contracts and are completely fine. Maybe what's at fault is the system for making something so incredibly dangerous seem benign.

After those two were ready Lara was next, already looking impatient to begin the mission. I tried my best but it was clear she had little interest in sharing her background with me. She said now was not the time to discuss such matters. Since she was probably powerful enough to flay me alive with her mind I decided now might not be the best time to press the issue. But the real eye opener was the last person to come in, the Drell named Karlakh. It's difficult to read a Drell's expression, their faces are so different from ours in many ways (he'd really need to keep his head down on the mission) but I could still see clear signs of anger on his face. I don't think I ever saw him not wearing that expression.

"If you don't mind me asking Karlakh, how did you end up being captured by the Batarians? I don't recall hearing of any raids on Hanar territory recently."

"No you wouldn't have," he muttered.

"Then how did-" I began.

"Is there a point to this Admiral?" he asked.

"I prefer to get to know the people serving under my command."

He turned to face me head on, his stance directly confrontational.

"Am I under your command Admiral?"

"Yes," I answered bluntly. "For as long as you remain part of this operation anyway."

He nodded slowly and took a seat so that I could begin helping him adjust his appearance.

"I see. Well then I'd better tell you then," he said.

"Let's see then, firstly in answer to your question: no I was never taken from Hanar territory. I was born into slavery on one of the Batarian colony worlds."

Realization dawned, or at least so I thought at the time.

"So it was your mother who was captured not you? Makes more sense why I hadn't heard of the raid if it was so long ago. I can't imagine what you must have gone through to survive all those years, I'm sorry."

"Actually you still haven't gotten the full picture Admiral, there was no raid at least not against the Hanar."

"I don't understand."

"You think the Hanar are the only ones who came for my people all those years ago?"

I frowned, he was certainly correct, up until this moment I hadn't considered that possibility. The Drell were originally from the planet Rakhana. By about the 1900's while man was still fighting with itself over our own planet the Drell had managed to use up all the natural resources of their world. Overpopulation and industrial expansion had left their planet virtually uninhabitable and they lacked the technology to explore space and find new and planets to colonize. With no where to go the Drell looked set to fight a grim civil war over the last resources. At the last moment, at some point in the 1980's the Hanar race chose to intervene by attempting to ferry as many Drell as possible from the doomed planet to their own home world, Kahje. Over ten years they managed to transport hundreds of thousands to safety before the war began. The Drell adapted quickly and are now as familiar with our level of technology as any other Council race.

"About twenty or thirty years after the Hanar saved those of us they wanted to help our people were approached by another race."

"The Batarians," I said. He nodded in response.

"Yes, from the stories I heard from the prison camps you can't imagine how thrilled everyone was when they first appeared. The war had started slowly, each faction fearful of sparking a full scale war. But it was getting fiercer every day, every attack was another provocation, another excuse to escalate the fighting. When the Batarians arrived my people were delighted, they imagined they would see thousands maybe even millions more saved by offworlders. The Batarians smiled and waved everyone they could onto their ships, packed them into the cargo holds assuring them they only wanted to save as many as possible."

"But it was a slave ship," I commented feeling sick, maybe asking about their backgrounds hadn't been such a great idea.

"I suppose the Batarians saw us as an easy target, not to mention discrete. The Council had written us off as dead with all their 'non-interference' policies, certainly they weren't likely to notice when some of us went missing."

"How have they managed to keep this a secret for so long?"

He laughed at that.

"Admiral, they control their media carefully. They don't let outsiders in unwatched and they certainly kept us hidden at all times. Lots of us died just trying to let someone outside the Hegemony know about us."

I looked back at my earlier thoughts about the Batarians. Did knowing what I knew now make it any easier to decide whether we should have intervened? For me? Not really, I knew it would still be horrible whatever we did but looking at the expression on Karlakh's face I could exactly what he would've done in my place. Reflected in his eyes I could see the whole of the Batarian Hegemony burning to the ground. Given half a chance I suspect he'd be willing to do just that but Lara assured me he would remain focused during the mission.

Regardless, finally they and we are ready for what needs to be done. Tomorrow the Resistance strikes back.


	18. Log 16

Log 16

Date: 26TH OCT 2186

Location: 15 KLICKS EAST OF SEATTLE, WASHINGTON, USA

So this was it, the big one as they say. Given the size of the compound we believed there could be as many as five hundred prisoners being held there, a huge rescue operation by resistance standards. More than that if we were successful today then other resistance cells could use our tactics to attempt similar missions. Set against that the risk that if things started to go wrong we wouldn't even be able to retreat for fear of leading the enemy to our base. Our best hope would be to scatter and hope the Reapers wouldn't be able to chase all of us at the same time. This would be a major test of the our ability to act against the enemy on a larger scale. I felt like everything I had built so far was being put on the line today.

The order of battle was simple enough, we had divided ourselves into three groups for this operation. The infiltration team would be lead by the Justicar and attempt to sneak into the facility and disable the defenses. Assuming this was successful the two attack groups led by myself and Major Coats respectively would assault the compound from the North and West. In order to free all the prisoners safely we would need to capture the prison camp and secure the surrounding area for several hours. To help us in this endeavor the Major had been brought in from his posting at Welcome to assist with the attack along with a number of his men. I couldn't say that I knew him well (apart from the fact he had saved my life) but given his general effectiveness in several border skirmishes in the villages I felt confident he was the right man for the job.

The operation began with the infiltration itself which was an incredibly frustrating time for me personally. Lara and her squad had taken up residence in a burned out building on the Reaper agent's patrol route. The bulk of our forces were being held back at this stage but I had a small unit with me to observe the the initial contact. The idea was we'd be far away enough not to be noticed but close enough to rush to their aid if the need arose.

I watched the agent through the scope of my rifle as he approached the house. He was very well dressed, in a tailored suit that seemed deeply out of place among the debris of ruined buildings. But already I could see the reports had had been accurate; he walked as if in a daydream. There was a vacant, empty expression on his face while his legs pulled him forward along a familiar patrol route, muscle memory replacing intellect.

The Husks followed behind him at a distance. It was strange seeing them out in the middle of the day doing such a menial task as guard duty. The bright daylight seemed to diminish their terrifying appearance. As I looked them clearly for the first time I noticed the cables that burrowed into their chests, the metal face plate fused to their bald skulls and felt a powerful surge of pity. I'd often thought of these things as abominations, the stuff of nightmares but they were merely tools of the Reapers, no more evil than a gun. In fact if they hadn't been so far gone I might've tried to save them.

The Reaper's agent seemed to rally slightly as they approached the house and saw that it was occupied for once. There was a sense he was waking up from a daze and he moved more purposefully as he approached. He called the occupants out to talk I guess because they all swiftly emerged, their hoods pulled over their heads, faces looking down to obscure their appearance. Luckily the agent was far too busy attempting to deliver his pitch to notice.

I wasn't nearly close enough to hear what was being said but Lara told me afterwards that he claimed our government had surrendered to the Reapers and that they were taking people to relief centers until it was possible to re-establish Earth's utilities and infrastructure. A lie of course but a clever one, designed to target anyone without the ability to learn what was happening around the world (which thanks to the Reapers frying our comm buoys was pretty much everyone). Still according to Lara his delivery was poor, it felt like he was reading off a script he'd been handed, another sign that the indoctrination was taking hold.

I was tense throughout the meeting, it would be all to easy for the plan to go wrong here before it had even really begun but the agent seemed to accept their story and lead them towards the compound. Not that this helped my stress levels much, they had been accepted as human but they still had to get past the guards at the gate without raising suspicion. We followed them to the compound and then ordered our army to take up positions around it in preparation for the attack. At the compound a dozen Marauders stood guard at the entrance, their keen eyes constantly scanning the horizon for potential threats. Luckily the Reapers logical nature helped us here, the agents were used to identify prisoners so the guards assumed anyone escorted by an agent must be safe. They were all scanned for weapons but their identity was never once questioned.

Once they were inside all we could do was wait and hope they would be able to deactivate the defenses. If they were discovered or couldn't reach the target they would be stuck inside the slaughterhouse and we would be left outside with no means of helping them escape. Xi Chan had advised them they had to reach a very specific area of the compound to be certain of knocking out all the defenses. If they couldn't get there for any reason, the operation was over.

So there we were, lying in the grass watching the compound through our rifle scopes while slowly turning into nervous wrecks. When we finally saw activity ahead it wasn't what we had hoped for. Sirens started going off all around the compound and many of the guards rushed back inside. I was certain that the infiltration team had been noticed, by rights the mission was over and we should already be retreating. I decided against that, it was still possible the infiltration team had deliberately started a fight in order to reach their target. For the moment the enemy was focused on the threat within the compound, we could afford to wait a little longer I told myself but truth be told even I was issuing orders to be ready to retreat.

It might sound melodramatic but I really was about to abort the mission when an explosion of biotic energy tore a hole in the side of the base. I couldn't see the infiltration team through the smoke but the signal had been given, hadn't it? Believe it or not we had overlooked this critical point, we hadn't planned on the infiltration team getting into trouble this early on. Now I had to wonder, had they hit their target or had the fighting simply forced Lara to use a powerful attack still a very long way from her objective? Were the defenses really down?

Picking up my rifle I scanned the area for a suitable target. There, in the corner I saw a lone Cannibal still thinking it was protected by the kinetic barrier. Praying that this attack wouldn't alert the Reapers in some way, I took the shot. The creature was knocked off its feet by the force before it ever knew it was defenseless. It was all the proof I needed so I immediately gave the order to begin our assault. Our makeshift army had spent what had seemed like nerve wracking hours (probably only about half an hour in reality) keeping hidden, now the order galvanized the entire force and they moved forward swiftly, eager to attack. The battle was on.

From the outset our plan had been to show our enemy just quite what they were up against here on Earth, it was a statement as much as a battle. Our two battle groups moved in, my force attacked from the North while Major Coats approached from the West. We deliberately attacked on a wide front, attempting to fool our enemy into believing we possessed a far larger army than we actually did. Unfortunately we had only managed to bring three shuttles as air support as our fuel supplies were running low but it was still an impressive force. We hoped that this display might force the Reapers to waste resources by committing many more troops to a city they had already destroyed and giving us more room to maneuver in the outlying settlements.

The results of our initial push were impressive, the enemy was divided as most of their forces had gone inside to track down the infiltration team unaware of the greater threat. We were able to pin the remaining guards against the walls of the compound and pick them off quickly. Several more troops rushed out of the doors, predominantly Husks but also several Brutes as well. Unarmed (well Brutes are like living weapons but you know what I mean) they were reduced to attempting to charge into our ranks and rip us to pieces. An effective tactic against small groups or civilians but a joke against our larger force out in the open. A torrent of enemy fire greeted their charge cutting them down where they stood. The Brutes endured the pounding better but ultimately even they had to succumb to hailstorm of incoming fire.

The men began cheering and celebrating. We had suffered few casualties and appeared to be destroying the enemy with ease. But in truth the Husks had been sent out like sacrificial lambs to the slaughter, a delaying tactic to give the rest of the Reaper army time to mobilize its forces. I suspected the main force would gather within the compound and force us to go in after them. My greatest fear was that they might use the prisoners within as human shields. As we still didn't know the layout beyond the exterior walls taking the base itself might quickly become a bloodbath.

I ordered my squads to begin advancing on the compound and they moved in swiftly. I let the trained soldiers take the lead at this point, holding the civilian volunteer squads back to provide support. The battle within the compound would be no place for the untrained or the inexperienced. I ordered my men to use explosives to blow their way in rather than risk an ambush at the doors.

However when it came, the ambush arrived not from within the base but from behind us. Everyone was focusing on the enemy base when suddenly we were in the midst of a firefight. Marauders had somehow come up from behind us and caught us by surprise. My troops were now under heavy fire and the Major's squads were too far away to provide aid. Something dropped out of the sky in the distance and I realized they were coming out of the ship above us. I was yelling into my communicator, ordering our shuttles to target the ship when a massive shape crashed to Earth a few feet from me, a Brute within killing range.

It was dazed from the fall, that was the only thing that saved us as we ran, scrabbling to put some distance between us. We weren't fast enough, I looked behind me to see a man get crushed under the Brute's hammer blow fist. Turning back I attacked with blind rage, firing my assault rifle point blank into it's head and chest but nothing seemed to phase it. It swung again, this time at me but I managed to step aside just in time. Before the thing had a chance to raise its fist again, I activated my omniblade and drove it into the creature's shoulder before ripping it out again.

The Brute staggered slightly, I'd wounded it but it could still move, if I wanted to survive I had to kill it. The Brute raised itself up again, preparing to bring its massive arms down once again and laminate me to the bedrock. I waited until the last second and then dove straight at it. I was told later by one of my men that he thought I'd gone mad, attacking such a powerful beast head on. Seeing my own men flattened had driven me a little crazy but there was a method to the madness. The Brute had unbalanced itself in its haste to strike me and as I hit it we fell backwards. Honestly all I can remember after that is seeing that it was dead. Apparently I had landed on top of it and gone berserk, hacking and slicing at the thing until it finally stopped moving.

After I had killed the Brute I saw that the shuttles had arrived, mopped up the Marauders and were turning their guns on the Reaper ship. Unfortunately their weapons while more than enough to kill ground troops were simply no match for the ship's heavy armor. Their weapons pounded against the hull but didn't leave a dent or even a mark on it and all the while more Reaper troops were dropping down on our heads.

We were losing the battle, our troops within the compound were pinned down but we couldn't send reinforcements to help without being swamped by the footsoldiers dropping from the sky. The longer the battle lasted the greater the risk of being joined by more Reaper reinforcements which would finish us. Then one of our shuttles got too close to the processor ship's maneuvering thrusters. These powerful, conventional thrusters immediately sucked the shuttle straight in and following a massive explosion ejected it just as quickly as it ripped itself apart. The ship started to spin madly as the damaged engines threw it about like a rag-doll. The thrusters went haywire trying to bring the flight back under control but it was hopeless. The ship jackknifed its way downwards, briefly skimmed over the top of the base, collapsing half the roof before finally crashing on the far side.

That was enough to end any major enemy resistance. What few Reaper troops survived the crash were easily picked off by the shuttles we had in the air. Now we could turn on the base from all sides. We opened so many breaches in the outer walls that we easily overwhelmed those guarding the inner perimeter. That freed up the squads within and allowed us to push deeper into the base. As I led one of the main teams I got to see firsthand all the horrors the Reapers were capable of. It was more chaotic than I had first imagined. I'd had mental images of some sort of abattoir of gruesome efficiency. In reality they acted like their prisoners were no more than meat. In places we saw dead bodies dumped in piles and ignored, we found simple cages throughout the compound filled either with those who were still screaming in protest or broken beyond reason. At the heart of the compound was a larger pen, where more prisoners were allowed to walk free (ish). They given the barest minimum to survive on and otherwise ignored completely. The Reaper footsoldiers hadn't seemed to register their existence at all, much less their cries and pleas for help.

Little resistance remained once we had breached the inner perimeter and the area was declared to be secured within the next half hour. Then we faced the task of freeing the prisoners, which had been made harder by the processing ship smashing into the building as it crashed. Falling debris had trapped several of the survivors and the ceiling was no longer structurally would have to work quickly but cautiously to get this done (the ruins might have concealed Reaper troops that had survived the collapse) but I breathed a sigh of relief. Despite the odds, despite the near invincibility of our enemy we'd proven that we could resist them and that we would.

Unfortunately we had to cut short the celebrations at least for the time being. It was imperative that we got everyone out of the area as quickly as possible, it wouldn't take too long for the Reapers to react to our victory. To that end we had established a small temporary base prior to the battle. It wasn't far away but it wasn't in the immediate area and was hidden well enough that the Reapers wouldn't find us straight away. The plan had been to rapidly evacuate the prisoners to that area where they could receive medical treatment and we could look for signs of indoctrination (a significant risk for anyone held within a Reaper facility for an extended period of time). That plan hadn't taken into account the roof collapse which significantly complicated the task.

In the end we settled on remaining in the area for one hour to help everyone we could. After that the risk of being caught in the open and endangering the lives of all the prisoners (and ourselves) would be too great. We'd have to leave anyone still trapped behind (did I ever mention that I really hate this war?). With that in mind we all joined in helping get people out of there. Most of the prisoners were shell shocked, suffering from dehydration and malnutrition (the only reason Reapers keep prisoners alive at all is to keep them fresh for processing). We tried to help where we could, sharing rations, clothes and just trying to reassure them that the worst was over.

Out of all of us who were helping Will was the most active and determined. I saw him working himself to the point of exhaustion in a selfless effort to rescue more people. Since the day he joined he's always been pushing himself hard out of compassion for others. I wasn't sure if he'd ever make it as a soldier but given the fire that burned within him I felt sure he'd be a great man one day. That being said I still assigned a guard to keep an eye on him as he worked, he was afterall young and (slightly) foolish. I didn't want to see him hurt himself in his efforts to help others.

As for myself? I helped out where I could but I have to admit I got sidetracked more than once. The first time was a rather unusual encounter with a man named Dr. Serkov.

"Admiral I need to speak with you immediately."

"Can you hold this a minute?" I asked indicating a beam I was lifting up to gain access to a buried room. He took over lifting the beam and I was able to get a trapped family out of there who quickly hurried out without saying a word. I returned to the stranger who was still holding up the beam.

"You're stronger than you look."

"Thank you, I am glad to help out."

"So how can I help you Mr-," I began.

"Doctor Serkov, Admiral. I am - I was a scientist on secondment from the Russian Federation to study certain alien plant samples known to have some interesting affects on the human brain."

I was taken aback for a moment

"The Thorian?"

I'll try to keep this story brief as the Thorian is (hopefully) extinct now. It was a form of sentient plant life discovered on the colony of Feros. The Thorian was a single massive entity that was capable of controlling other creatures including humans by spreading its spores, it ended up being destroyed after it tried to seize control of the colony. The doctor looked astonished that I had heard of it but then he noticed the look on my face.

"Relax Admiral, our reasons for studying the creature were purely scientific, whatever else it may have been it was an ancient, unique and fascinating subject of research. Actually I must insist you allow me to get back to it as soon as possible."

"We're in the middle of a war right now doctor. Forgive my attitude but we have bigger priorities at the moment."

"Oh my apologizes, I'm not explaining this very well am I? After the outbreak of the war we quickly determined that Reaper indoctrination was in many ways similar to the brainwashing methods of the Thorian. We've been working on a means of curing the effects."

"Maybe you would be safer if you continued your research back at our base in Seattle." I suggested.

He shook his head and politely declined.

"I'm sorry Admiral but there is a lot of irreplaceable equipment at our lab, far too bulky to be moved. Don't worry about us too much, the base is an Alliance facility. It's small and well hidden enough not to have been noticed so far."

"Well we'll take you back to our base for now and in a couple of days after the heat's died down, I'll arrange for some of our men to escort you back there."

He looked at me for a few moments with an almost calculating expression on his face.

"That would be, acceptable Admiral. Thank you for your cooperation."

Well that was one distraction easily dealt with. The next was slightly more... Actually I really can't find the right word to describe it (but horrendous might fit). As I was evacuating room after room I eventually came face to face with (there's no easy way to say this) General Coberg.

"You!" That was me, eloquent as ever.

"Who were you expecting, the bleeding tooth fairy? Took you long enough to liberate this place, how did you know I was here?"

"Believe me, I had no idea. Is anyone else from the Vancouver base here with you?"

"A few of my officers were taken prisoner as well as well as some of the civilians I guess. Several of them got carted off to that ship up above us, no idea what happened to them after that."

"Then they're dead, its a slaughterhouse."

He didn't look surprised.

"Figured as much. Well we best head off to wherever we're going, I'm assuming you lost the Vancouver base?"

You lost he says, like he didn't offer up the base to the Reapers on a silver platter. Clearly a couple of weeks in captivity hadn't managed to change the General's attitude much.

"We were forced to evacuate yes. Was a woman named Maria taken alive with you?"

The general looked blank when I said the name so I added

"She was the chief of police."

"Oh her? Yeah she was taken alive."

"Do you know where she is?"

"She was one of the first to be taken, she'd been making trouble for the Reapers I think. Did she mean something to you Admiral?"

"Just, just go join the others please General. We'll discuss the situation in more detail later."

So Maria was dead, I'd already assumed as much when I saw her disappear in the fighting in Vancouver. I felt the loss all over again, the General said she been killed for 'making trouble'. I smiled briefly, Maria never had known when to quit, if she is really gone I'm glad to know she went down fighting. I took a moment alone in the now empty to cells to remember all the people we'd left behind in Vancouver wondering who else had survived in this place. Pointless to speculate really, still worse to hope for one person over the lives of others (the General's the exception that proves the rule in this case).

I headed back outside, we'd pretty much run out of time in any case. I looked up and saw the shuttles were still firing on the enemy ship but from the look of it they were wasting their time. I ordered them to head back to base with the worst of the injured. The rest of us would head to the fallback camp and hideout until the Reapers left the area again. This was still a victory for us but while walking away thinking about the conversations I'd had today, I couldn't help but wonder what the future held for the resistance.


	19. A Sheppard on trial

**Author's Note: Ok so here we are at the end of the second section. Hope you've all enjoyed it thus far! All reviews are appreciated!**

A Shepard on trial

The silence in the court room before they brought him in was deafening. The few sounds that did occasionally interrupt the silence, the flicking through of written trial notes, the hushed whispers that were quickly silenced and above all the heavy footsteps beyond the room as someone was marched ever closer all seemed so much louder than they should have done, a stark contrast to the quiet that ruled the room. Everyone present seemed to be on edge, nervous even about what was about to happen. Commander Shepard was about to go on trial.

Well, not on trial as such as many politicians and bureaucrats tried to stress at length. This was as they would often state loudly and repeatedly to deflect the questions of the media just a hearing to establish the facts of the situation. But in truth it was a hearing in name alone and many saw it as a chance to bring the Commander to heel. For every friend he had within the Alliance, he also had an enemy. Small minded fools often enough, jealous of the Commander's achievements and looking forward to seeing him disgraced or worse. Some that were reasonable enough officers, intelligent and sensible if somewhat too inclined to believe the malicious rumors spread by others. And still others that had made mistakes which had been later revealed by the Commander, afterall there will always be those prepared to hold a grudge.

It almost seems like too much of a coincidence that as I had that thought I caught sight of Councilor Udina standing above me in the viewing gallery that overlooks the court room. As usual I couldn't read his expression, his face was set. He didn't notice me, just remained standing, waiting for the trial to begin. I decided not to try and approach him, I was happy enough where I was and I suspected there might be some bad blood given the way things ended. When I left the Citadel Council I'd pretty much managed to crash and burn my own political career to say nothing for Humanity's reputation. At the time it felt a reasonable sacrifice, my somewhat questionable tactics had helped us bring down several Cerberus bases. Nevertheless I left Udina picking up the pieces and even getting the Councilor position I'd vacated might not have completely consoled him.

Finally the Commander was lead into the room by James Vega, a marine I'd convinced to return to the service about a week earlier. It had taken a trip all the way to Omega to find him but it had been worth it to find someone I could trust to guard Shepard. Knowing who to trust is frankly becoming harder and harder these days but I felt Vega was a safe enough choice.

"Alright then, I call this court to order," the voice of Admiral Hackett rasped out although it was fairly unnecessary, no one was going to interrupt these proceedings. Alongside him sat Admiral Singh and Admiral Gowner (unfortunately I had to recluse myself as Shepard was briefly my second in command). They would be leading the proceedings but ultimately Shepard would be judged by the politicians. They would take every word said here and remember it, either to champion his cause or to question if his was still fit for command.

"It's been requested that we begin this hearing by confirming your identity Commander," Hackett explained.

"Officially speaking the last time you were seen as far as the Alliance is concerned is when you were declared K.I.A. during an attack that destroyed your vessel."

"Well... That did happen sir. Cerberus later rebuilt me but I'm afraid I can't tell you how they managed it."

"We'll get to Cerberus in a moment Shepard. For now please just recount for the court what you remember of the events leading up to that moment."

"We were chasing down a lead on possible Geth activity in a remote system when we came under fire from an unknown enemy. The attack came so suddenly that I was still in my private quarters on deck two when our pilot Joker was forced to take evasive maneuvers. He did everything he could to try and save the ship but the hostile ship's firepower was too overwhelming. When I saw the extent of the damage I ordered an immediate evacuation of the Normandy."

"So why didn't you evacuate with the rest of your crew?"

"I was alerted by Liara that Joker wasn't able to make it to an escape pod."

I smiled to myself at this statement. It wasn't true of course, by all accounts it was Joker's stubborn refusal to abandon ship that had kept him there but it was a classic Shepard move to protect his crew from blame. I realized I'd tuned out the Commander's statement while thinking about this and returned my attention to the court room.

"- was able to help Joker reach the last escape pod, he'd just climbed inside when the ship was hit again. There was an explosion that blew me backwards, away from the pod. Knowing there was no way for me to make it back before the ship exploded I hit the manual release for the pod and watched it float away. As the ship was destroyed I was pulled clear of the explosion, sucked out into space by the vacuum. I had my breather helmet on but a small piece of shrapnel from the blast had ruptured my enviro-suit. I died in orbit of the planet below, clawing at the suit rupture, feeling the cold take me as I struggled to breath..."

The Commander broke off his speech, clearly unwilling to describe his death in any greater detail. I couldn't begin to imagine what that must have like or how he grappled every day with the question of what kind of ghoulish techniques Cerberus had used to bring him back from the dead. The trouble was no one knew for certain what had been done. Almost everyone who was ever involved with the project was dead, the few that survived were unlikely to share intel with the Alliance. Not hard to see why some were a little cautious about his return.

"Thank you Shepard. For the benefit of the court I can reveal our scientists have run every test they can think of to confirm the Commander's identity and found no evidence that suggests the man standing in front of me is not Commander Shepard. Having seen for myself that he also has the Commander's memories I now formally accept that identification on the court's behalf," Hackett went on to say.

"Now then Commander, let's talk about Cerberus. Do you deny working for them?"

"Yes sir," replied the Commander and the shock that rippled though the crowd was palpable. The hushed whispers started again, spreading through the gathered observers like a great wave.

"I want order in this court room," Hackett's voice, not particularly loud but radiating authority quickly brought the room back to silence.

"Perhaps you can clarify that last statement Commander. We have the signed statements of several witnesses, both reliable and otherwise that place you in the company of known operatives of Cerberus."

"I worked with Cerberus Admiral, not for them."

"I see. Well for the benefit of the court could you please explain that distinction in your own words."

So far so good I thought. Just as I had hoped Admiral Hackett was giving Shepard a fair chance to justify his actions, if we'd had a different man leading the hearing the Commander might be in jail already by now. Shepard didn't waste any time in seizing the opportunity.

"I agreed to work with Cerberus because they were investigating a threat against humanity. I was told that several human colonies in the Terminus Systems had been attacked with every inhabitant abducted. No signs of attack or battle and no one left behind and then I learned that the Alliance wasn't even investigating these attacks."

"The Terminus Systems are outside Alliance jurisdiction," muttered Admiral Singh irritably.

"I'm not questioning the Alliance's decision Admiral, I'm just explaining my reasons for becoming involved with Cerberus. They brought me back to life so that I could help them put an end to the abductions and provided me with a ship, the Normandy SR-2. I needed their resources so that I could protect the human colonies in the Terminus. But ultimately the mission was still my own, I made the command decisions and ensured that we didn't break or even bend the rules as long as I was in charge."

"Except for working with a terrorist organization," Admiral Gowner pointed out while looking up at Udina. I had a feeling the Councilor had pulled a few strings to put one of his closest friends on the panel of judges.

"Then it seems to me that the question we have to address is whether or not working with a terrorist organization is a crime in and of itself. It's reasonable to note that Shepard did not in any way contribute to any terrorist activity of any kind while a member of Cerberus. At least not to the best of our knowledge," stated Hackett firmly.

I stood up determined to do my part to stand up for Shepard particular as it seemed Udina might be doing his best to try and sink his chances.

"If I might briefly interrupt Admirals, it should be noted that as a direct result of Shepard's actions we discovered that the abductions were the work of the Collectors. And it should also be remembered that his team single-handedly eliminated that threat, saving countless lives."

The trial dragged out across the morning and into the afternoon with lunch passing unmarked until finally there was a adjournment at 3pm. The rest of the trial so far had shown mixed results. Predominantly the finer points of the law and ethics were debated by the various officials present, occasionally at volume. They picked apart Shepard's exploits in great detail, piece by piece. Each component of Shepard's year long mission is carefully examined, regarded and debated. At the rate they're going it'll take months to get through all the material but I'm in no hurry, the final incident to be examined will be the Bahak system.

I head to the cafeteria in low spirits, the trial didn't go as badly as I feared but it isn't the only concern on my mind. The problems that I and the galaxy as a whole face seem to multiply every day but the one thought that stays with me is that I failed the Commander. He nominated me for the position on the Council to warn people to prepare for the Reapers arrival. To play politician and spread the word so that any of us might stand a chance when the time came.

Despite all appearances until a few months ago I thought I was starting to make a difference. Public acknowledgements were few and far between of course. In fact the idea had publicly become completely toxic and the few that still spoke out in that way only served to make things worse (it really doesn't help your case if the people shouting about your cause are doing it in their free time between ranting crazed conspiracy theories about being contacted by visitors from the future or some such). But nevertheless, privately I'd managed to talk some people round to look at the evidence more closely.

Something changed after Shepard turned himself in and the date for the hearing was set. Parts of the media began to attack his ideas more heavily than ever before, playing the fallen hero angle to a receptive audience. To many the simple fact that Shepard was being put on trial was enough to discredit everything he'd ever said. His reputation was now inexorably tied to people's belief in the Reapers. As he is such a polarizing figure that now meant folk either completely accepted the Reapers existence or denied it totally.

Even that wouldn't have been enough to cripple the network of trusted contacts I was building. At least not on its own but we faced attack from a second, more insidious source. Several of contacts were being found out and subtly "persuaded" to change their minds. Normally they were being discovered as they attempted to convince others of the truth, others were simply suspected because of their close ties to myself or Shepard. And when they were discovered the results were usually the same, harassment, gentle exclusion, demotions in one or two cases.

The worst one was Sarah Jang, a long term backbencher in the Alliance Parliament and probably one of my favorite politicians (not that there was much competition). She was publicly revealed by the media to be a supporter of Shepard's claims. The influx of hate mail was bad enough but the attempt to send concealed explosives to her private residence was a step over the line. The attempt failed and the culprit was quickly arrested but the damage had already been done. Jang publicly renounced her position on the Reapers and resigned three days later. There's still a fair few of us left that understand who's a stake but it's getting harder to know who to trust even among ourselves.

When I finally reached the cafeteria it was mostly empty but I did see Udina there, it was clear that he'd been waiting for me to arrive.

"Good to see you again Admiral, I trust you've been keeping well?"

'Classic Udina' I thought to myself, we worked together for years and still he addresses me by my rank. I responded in kind.

"Quite well, thank you Councilor. How have you been taking to the new job?"

"It's a great responsibly of course but nothing I can't handle. That said it would be easier if I still had you back on the Citadel."

Unbelievable! Less than a minute into the conversation and already he wanted to recruit me.

"I think we both know I was never really cut out for politics, my place is here with the Alliance."

"Actually when you weren't raving about Reapers you made quite an impressive negotiator, for a soldier obviously."

"Obviously."

"I meant what I said though Anderson, you were a highly skilled operator and I'd be happy to have you back at my side in any posting you wanted. Though you would have to drop this Reaper nonsense once and for all."

"Drop this Reaper nonsense?"

"Trust me, I've been at this job long enough to know that there's a way back despite everything you've done. Unless that is you chose to commit political suicide."

"With respect Councilor, you're just interested in trying to bury the truth about the Reapers."

He shook his head sadly and I got the impression that his next words were the truth, or at least the truth as he saw it.

"I'm simply trying to look out for a colleague who had a promising career, I'm sorry you weren't able to see that."

"I'd happily retire today if it would help stop the Reapers," I replied but he was already walking away. The gulf between us wasn't just physical I realized, we were so far apart now that we couldn't even understand each other's point of view. I hoped Shepard managed to get through the hearing okay, it looked like we might still need him again.


	20. Log 17

Log 17

Date: 28TH OCT 2186

Location: SEATTLE RUINS, WASHINGTON, USA

I hate Cerberus. Oh and Udina (a lot) but Cerberus have gone from a mild annoyance a few years ago to my most hated enemy and I'm counting the Reapers in that list. I'll give you the full story in a moment but before that I just need to vent. Right now our only focus should be the Reapers, they're an ancient, apocalyptic enemy of the entire galaxy so you would think they'd be the first priority for everyone. But not for Cerberus, since the start of the war they've made no attempt to fight the Reapers and have made several attempts to sabotage our own efforts.

And what they have done now? It seems like the Illusive Man and all of his goons have completely lost their minds. They could be indoctrinated obviously but how could that even happen to an entire organization without being noticed. I don't buy it, not unless the Illusive Man's got some Reaper tech squirreled away in his headquarters (wherever that might be).

No I think he's just gone insane with his desperation to gain power. Shepard once told me the Cerberus philosophy has always been very simple: anything is possible if you are sufficiently determined. Mix in a total lack of morals and you get a cult of fanatics prepared to do anything to achieve their increasingly insane goals. Doesn't help that they've been copying a few tricks from the Reapers like putting implants into their troops, turning them into hybrid monsters. The Illusive Man can now build an army of programmed super soldiers, utterly obedient to his will. I don't think it's much of a surprise he ended up going on a power trip after that.

Returning to where I last left off, we'd just arrived at our temporary base just a short distance from our raid on the Reaper Processing ship. I made my previous log entry there and then settled down for awhile to watch the remains of the enemy base behind us. There were some people I knew I would need to speak with soon (like the General unfortunately) but I wanted to make certain the enemy weren't coming after us first.

It was about an hour after we'd arrived before we saw much sign of activity at the compound. Eventually a small fleet of Reapers (three destroyers and a capital ship) glided silently into view. As soon as they appeared on the horizon everyone grabbed whatever cover they could and stayed there. We all stayed that way for some time not even daring to try and sneak a peak at the approaching ships. If they saw us we would all die, it was that simple as that. Eventually and very slowly I inched back towards the open just enough so that I could see.

The light was starting to fade at this point, a storm was coming in that darkened the sky and gave us a little more cover. I'm not really sure if that would impact the Reapers ability to find us in any way but I was grateful for even the slightest edge.

Once they'd arrived at the site of the battle the Reapers worked swiftly and efficiently to erase every trace of their ruined base. The Capital ship only stopped long enough to pick up the damaged processing ship and fly off with it. Once that was done the Destroyers started opening fire on the surrounding area. As the explosions began across the countryside I could hear the sounds of panic coming from behind me. Two of the Reapers were focusing their 'attack' on the remains of the compound, steadily wiping it off the map. The third, hovering high above us was firing shots randomly throughout the area, at the trees, the hills even the lake (not sure what they hoped to achieve there). The Reaper was turning the valley into a burning vision of hell and I watched transfixed by the carnage. It wasn't until the screaming registered with me that I focused on the situation at hand again.

I headed back down into the relative (a word here meaning imaginary) safety of our makeshift shelter. Inside people were frantic, several of them tried to push past them to get to the exit. I held them back with the help of my soldiers and had to bellow at them to get their attention (I wasn't too worried about keeping quiet anymore, we couldn't be heard over the bombardment outside in any case).

"Everyone stay calm the Reapers are just trying to frighten us." I said with as much confidence as I could muster.

"If you try to run you'll only risk attracting their attention. Staying here will be safer."

"You should listen to the Admiral folks, he knows all about defensive strategy," General Coberg added.

I ignored the General and focused on keeping everyone calm and more importantly out of sight. I looked around at these frightened refugees huddled in this overgrown shack, most of whom still didn't know me and asked myself how I could get them to trust me. Do I even deserve their trust? Staying put was logical, it was the right decision tactically but that wouldn't mean a damn thing if the next shot landed anywhere near us. I couldn't guarantee their safety and I could see in their eyes that they knew it, the doubt was spreading. I remember thinking to myself, this is a war of course it's dangerous, I'm just trying my best to give you a chance to survive.

I realized then that they didn't need any false promises, the best thing I could do for them was to offer them some hope. So there in that in little shack, in the fading light to a backdrop of explosions I told the prisoners a story. A story of bravery and heroism, a story of the help that would come for us one day, the story of Commander Shepard.

One day people will read this (I hope!) and think I idolized Shepard too much. Yes he is on a mission to bring help to us but he is still just one man. Spectre or not that's still a slim chance to pin your hopes on. If moments like this one prove anything its that the Commander has become more than just a soldier, he's become a symbol. He helped us to survive that night. One day after the war's over I'll find the words to thank him.

In the morning all the Reapers were gone as well as everything else. Their ship had been carried away to be repaired and set up elsewhere, their base had been vaporized. I ground my teeth in frustration, our greatest victory to date and after the Reapers 'housecleaning' all sign of it was gone. I shook off the thought, the escaped prisoners were the real victory and the Reapers couldn't take that away.

Today we planned to interview as many of the escapees as we could to look signs of possible indoctrination before we escorted them back to the base in Seattle (In the confusion I may have 'accidentally' arranged for the General to be checked over at least three times after which he seemed more than a little grouchy). While that was going on I checked in with Major Coats group which had sheltered elsewhere after the attack (it was a 'avoid putting all our eggs in one basket' kind of thing).

"Rough night, huh Admiral," he remarked as he approached.

I nodded "How were things with your group?"

"Everyone was pretty jumpy when the shooting started but I was lucky I mostly had trained soldiers with me. How did you manage with civilians in tow?"

"You just have to give people something to believe in."

"I guess so."

"How bad did your squad get hit in the battle? I haven't had time to look into it until now."

"We lost seven men in the assault, couple more badly injured, I've sent them on ahead to Seattle."

"Damn, I'm sorry."

"We'll make the Reapers pay for it sir, don't worry."

"Well let's get back to work." I said gesturing towards the long line of people waiting for interview.

The interviews themselves were... Tedious and not very informative. I sat at a makeshift desk with a junior officer speaking to the prisoners one by one. A few of them were clearly indoctrinated but very far gone. They didn't know where they were, what year it was or even their own name. Most of these were docile (one did try to throw himself at me though, so he's being treated for a broken nose at the moment) so we just took them prisoner. Maybe someone can find a way to help them someday but in the meantime they don't seem like too much of a threat.

It worried me that we were only finding indoctrinated in the final stages. We had a list of possibles but it was based on such slim evidence. I resolved to send these groups to some of our outlying outposts in the villages, try to keep them away from Reaper signals (and critical areas!). At about midday a soldier pushed past Dr. Serov (who'd been hanging around me all day, probably planning to pester me about getting to his lab again) approached my desk and saluted.

"What is it Corporal," I asked, grateful for the reprieve from the interviews that were taking longer than anticipated.

"I've come from Seattle sir. We've just received a message from Admiral Hackett. He's responded to your request for intel on any Earth based Cerberus operations, all the info is on this pad for you. Also he's finally received confirmation of the Turian/Krogan alliance against the Reap-"

I didn't hear the rest, I heard a shot and fell backwards off my stool. At first all that registered was the feeling of crashing to the ground, the pain in my arm. I looked round and saw Dr. Serov aiming a gun at me, grinning from ear to ear. Several soldiers were aiming their weapons at him but they had no idea what to do. As I lay there I tried to make sense of it, was he indoctrinated? Why wait until I was surrounded by soldiers to attack, what had been the trigger? The pain in my arm made it harder to think but then I recalled what the Corporal had been saying before the attack.

"He's with Cerberus, stop him!"

There were three soldiers around the doctor, two opened fire on him but he moved so fast the shots passed right by him. I saw one of our men go down, hit in shoulder by the crossfire. I yelled at them to stop but already someone else had come running in to attack, shouting as he did so. They tried to smash the doctor over the head with the butt of a rifle but Serov grabbed their arm and within moments had his gun pressed to their head.

I propped myself up as best I could, leaning against my desk so I could see what was happening more clearly. As the scene came into view I groaned, it was Will with a gun to his head. In the background I could see Jeff had already thrown his weapon down and was pleading with Serov to let him go.

"Doctor Serov," I called out loudly to get his attention. I desperately needed to regain control of the situation or people would die, Will first.

"Let the kid go doctor. Your Cerberus enhancements seem to be more than capable of keeping you safe."

I was referring to the implants we've been told are being put into Cerberus soldiers now. They make them faster, stronger and more obedient but I didn't know they made it possible to dodge bullets until then.

"Well yes they do appear to be performing quite nicely after I made a few modifications. I'm faster and stronger than any of our troops now, well except for Kai Leng of course."

"Leng? Is he here too?" I asked. Leng was an Alliance soldier that got dishonorably discharged and ended up as an enforcer for the Illusive Man. We shared a brief and violent history, it was only by sheer luck it had ended in my favour.

"Hardly, though that's quite a sore point for him. He's quite annoyed you stayed behind on Earth Admiral. He'd been hoping to finish you off personally."

"Seriously though, just let the kid go. Whatever might be happening in the rest of the Galaxy there's no point in us fighting down here on Earth. Seeing as we're both stuck here we might as well work together to save as many lives as we can. I'm sure you're aware I don't normally approve of Cerberus but if your goals are still to benefit humanity, we might be able to work together just this once."

Did I believe what I was saying? I'm not really sure what I would've done if he'd agreed. I could have tried to make it work but I don't know if I'd ever be comfortable to trusting him.

"No, no I don't think so. It's a fine sentiment Admiral but the Alliance doesn't have anything to offer us and somehow I doubt you'd approve of our plans. Here's a better idea, I'll walk out of here with this kid and maybe drop him off once I'm safely away. Oh and once you've got him back I'd hurry off to that base in Seattle and start evacuating. My scouts already know where it is and once I return to my lab so will the Reapers."

"What?" I almost screamed the word at him.

He laughed "Think of it as a small distraction to keep you off my back for a few days. If you're quick most of you should survive."

Looking at my injured arm I replied

"Don't forget I still owe you a bullet doctor and I'm a better shot than you are."

With that he laughed and moved off, several people had walked over from the group of prisoners while we'd been talking and now walked off with him (lackeys of his I guess). As he moved away Lara stood between him and the way out but for the first time she was slow and hesitant, I guess the code forbade her from attacking while an incident was in play (or something). She started to move forward with purpose but three of the Doctor's supporters threw themselves at her and by the time she'd dealt with them (I won't go into details but let's just say they'll probably survive) the Doctor was getting away.

"I'll go after them seeing as your Asari is useless." said General Coberg.

"The code-" Lara began but the General cut across her abruptly.

"Yeah whatever, I'm going. You two with me," he said pointing at two guards who were still standing.

He headed off in pursuit and we broke out some of the Medi gel to treat the most badly wounded. I ordered everything packed up and made ready to leave. No point worrying about leading possible indoctrinated to Seattle now, the Reapers would find out about the base soon enough thanks to Cerberus.

"We need to be ready to leave by the time the General gets back," I said (or preferably just before).

Unfortunately the General did make it back before we were ready to leave although unsurprisingly Dr. Serov wasn't with him.

"I got your lad back," he said pushing Will towards me. "And I managed to capture one of theirs," he added indicating the other man he had with him.

"And the men you went out with?"

"Serov ambushed them, they were killed."

"Goddammit," the General hadn't been back 24 hours and already managed to push our casualty rate higher (but we probably wouldn't have gotten Will back without him nevermind the prisoner).

"Let's get out of here."

We marched back quickly and in silence, I spent most of the trip reading up on Dr. Serov. According to the somewhat sketchy Alliance intel on him he was in fact the Scientific Director for Cerberus, their number one top scientist. He actually ranked more or less equal with General Oleg Petrovsky, Cerberus's leading military officer. Petrovsky had been captured by Shepard while trying to protect his conquest of the Omega space station (most of the details in the report came from him). We don't know anything about Serov's past up until his recruitment into Cerberus by the General. After that Petrovsky describes him as quickly climbing through the ranks to eventually be counted among the old guard most of whom had fought in the First Contact War (despite the doctor being far to young to have fought in it himself).

Although Petrovsky has thus far refused to reveal the specifics of any of the doctor's past projects we've been able to determine he was mostly focused on work involving the creation of supersoldiers. It wasn't known that he possessed cybernetic enhancements but the report did note that the implants were becoming increasingly common even among non combatants. There were some vague guesses as to the kind of resources and troops he might have a assigned to him but who could say if they had survived the initial invasion? Oh and it mentioned that Serov was suspected to be hiding out in a secret facility on Illium (given the throbbing pain in my arm, I think that intel might not be completely accurate).

It took us six hours to march back to the base in Seattle so by that time most of the day was already gone. Our shuttles had already flown ahead of us so we were greeted by scenes of packing and evacuation. There was a long way to go yet but we were making good time so I went to check on the comm room.

To my surprise there were a dozen calls that had to reach me while I had been absent. I activated the system and sent a call request back hoping to hear what it was about. Within a few minutes an image of Admiral Hackett materialized in front of me.

"Good to see you again Anderson, how did your raid against the Reapers go?"

"Well enough, that is until Cerberus put in a surprise appearance."

I swear I've never seen Admiral Hackett looked shocked before today, didn't know he could even manage it.

"Cerberus again? What did they do?"

"Again? What have they done up there now?"

"You might wanna sit down for this one Admiral," he began.

I slumped into a seat and waited for him to continue.

"We've just been informed Cerberus has attacked the Citadel."

I sat bolt upright.

"The Citadel? How? Surely Cerberus doesn't have the resources to pull off a stunt like that."

"They had help," Hackett continued. "From Udina. He disabled a lot of our security protocols so that Cerberus could land an invasion force on one of the upper docking stations. They were able to overwhelm Citadel Security checkpoints-"

I lost track of what Hackett was saying as I felt rage boiling inside me, Udina had betrayed us?

"-but eventually the attack was repelled." Udina was saying when I focused again. "Unfortunately Kai Leng escaped and we haven't had any luck tracking him so far."

"So Leng was involved too. Damn, wish I'd managed to put him down when I had the chance. Do we have any idea why Udina did this?"

"The prevailing theory is that he was using Cerberus support to stage a coup, with Leng brought in to eliminate the Council leaving Udina in charge. Our best guess is he was hoping to use the position to leverage more support for Earth. Unfortunately we're not able to ask him in person, he was killed during the assault."

I thought back to my last conversation with the man, he'd said 'I'll do whatever it takes to bring help to you', had I helped him rationalize the attack?

"It likely that faulty logic was brought about by indoctrination but so far we haven't found the source," Hackett continued.

"Don't assume there is one. I knew Udina well enough to know he may have done this on his own initiative. He was a patriot and he always did try to do things his own way."

"Surely he couldn't have thought he could control Cerberus? They might've let him rule for awhile but ultimately they have their own agenda."

"It's hard to say, maybe he thought he could influence them, he's been doing the same with others his whole career."

"Well I'll take that possibility under advisement it may help our investigation into who may have helped him pull something like this off. In the meantime what's this news about Cerberus on Earth?"

I filled Hackett in on everything that had happened in the raid while at the same time all my thoughts were focused on Udina. 'I hope history remembers me for what I tried to do' well he'd be remembered, he'd made certain of that. Not the legacy he'd hoped for I'm sure but would it have been different if he'd won? Taking control of the Citadel was achievable but being accepted as leader of the Council races? Not a chance, in this crisis they're barely helping each other, maybe once humanity's needs were ignored out of bigotry and snobbishness but times have changed. Even if Udina had ascended that last step, the one he's been chasing for his entire career and gotten humanity equal or elevated status with the other races the Reaper threat means they still wouldn't rush to our aid.

"So Serov is on Earth?" asked Hackett bringing me back to reality.

"I saw him myself, he's here and appears to have resources at his disposal. He mentioned a base of his but we don't have its location yet."

"Do you have any leads on that Admiral?"

"We captured one prisoner as they tried to escape, we'll see if he talks."

"Understood, from what we know Serov has mostly been involved in-"

"Supersoldier project, I read the file. Do we know what projects of that type Cerberus has active at the moment?"

"We've learned of a project named 'Phantom' involving implanting troops with Reaper technology to make them faster and stronger not to mention more obedient."

"Yeah, I think we saw some of that today, the good doctor has even implanted himself. Are there any other projects up and running that we know of? I'd like to avoid any more unwelcome surprises."

"The only other one we've heard about is Project Adjutant but we believe that was shut down when Shepard helped retake Omega."

"What did that focus on?"

"Creating some sort of virus that mutated its victims into a strange form of Reaper soldier that Cerberus was able to control. If you find any evidence of it Admiral standing orders are to completely eradicate it at any cost."

"Understood, we'll get to work on tracking down Serov."

"This could be a big win for us Admiral, Serov may have key intel that could lead to Cerberus's defeat. Good hunting, Hackett out."

We're down to a skeleton crew now at the base, we should have at least another day before the good doctor can reach a communicator and set the Reapers on us. I've been trying to sleep but my mind is just too busy. It's been, less than two months now I guess? Just two months ago Earth wasn't occupied, Udina was still alive and most the galaxy still thought the Reapers were made up. Now we're hiding in basements from the monsters zooming over our heads. We're all just getting by one day at a time, it's terrifying to think this might be it for us, just more and more of this with no end in sight. I'm not the only one feeling this way, I've spoken on the QEC to some of the other resistance leaders around the globe. We're not a breaking point yet but people are starting to look towards the future and wonder if there's going to be one.


	21. Log 18

Log 18

Date: 30TH OCT 2186

Location: SEATTLE RUINS, WASHINGTON, USA

Woke up the next day feeling refreshed (no nightmares for once which is a bonus. I've heard Shepard's been having some sort of really eerie ones where everything's in slow motion. Personally I'd prefer them over ones involving being chased down by shrieking Husks!) Had another brief talk with Shepard on the QEC, praised him on curing the Genophage and discussed the Cerberus attack with him. I didn't think it would be a good idea to trouble him with details of the fight back on Earth, his full focus need to be on getting help for us and building this Crucible thing. He doesn't need motivation to help Earth, details would only make him take bigger risks to get help here faster.

Thanks to the Medi gel my arm's getting better quickly (I swear that stuff's a miracle in itself, when it runs out we'll all be in a lot of trouble). I spent the morning supervising the rest of the evacuation (wounded arm plus rank still gets you out of heavy lifting even these days). The shuttles were the biggest issue, our best bet would be to wait until the last moment to launch them all and hope some got through safely (if they set out too early the Reapers could spot them and calculate their launch site).

Despite having to evacuate the base (which is no minor issue) the day was going pretty well and we were still riding the high that followed our victory over the Reaper processing ship. Not to mention that the new alliance between the Krogan and Turians was bringing some unexpectedly good news to our door for once. Word was that the Krogan were flooding onto the battlefields of Menae and a joint Krogan/Turian task force had even launched an effort to liberate the Volus homeworld of Irune. Bringing the Krogan into the war has given us all some much needed breathing space. Hopefully we can use the time to dig our heels into the territory we still have left.

Of course the relative peace couldn't last the whole day and before midday I was called about a dispute between Coberg and Lara T'Ren.

"Oh boy," I thought to myself, the General and the Justicar both had very strong personalities to say the least. Preventing the base from being torn apart by Biotics was going to take some careful diplomacy.

When I arrived the corridor was absolutely packed with the General and his men on one side and Lara and about half her crew on the other. Everyone was shouting but if you were handing out prizes they'd have to go to Lara. In between the two groups stood Xi Chan and the Colonel maintaining a hopeless attempt at achieving order.

Sighing at what I realized had probably been an inevitability I retuned my radio and broadcast a high pitched whine through the speakers. The General's men who were all wearing headsets got it the worst (one or two actually dropped to their knees so I may have overdone it). I pushed my way to the front and Lara calmed her own crew for me.

"So, who's going to be the first to try and explain this mess?"

"This vile creature," began Lara indicating the General. "Was about to use tactics unworthy of his uniform, or any uniform for that matter."

"Oh and I suppose you have a better suggestion?" Asked Coberg.

"We should not demean ourselves to such acts regardless of the consequences."

"No asked you to like it princess, just go meditate somewhere and we'll get on with it."

"The code demands that I intercede in matters that involv-"

"To hell with your pointless code you-"

"Enough." I said loudly as the room started to descend into bickering again. "Neither of you has told me what the hell's going on yet."

Lara drew herself up to her full height.

"I apologize Admiral such arguments are unbecoming of a Justicar. There was a... disagreement when I learned that General Coberg intends to torture the prisoner for information. The code forbids such actions unless in the defense of innocents which I do not believe is his goal."

I turned to face the General.

"I can understand that you want to get information that might prove useful. The prisoner is being difficult then I take it?"

"We haven't had a chance to get near him yet thanks to that crazy Asari."

"You'd torture him without even attempting to convince him to talk willingly first? Is this how you usually run things General?"

"You want to quote some Alliance protocol at me Admiral? Take a look around, all the old rules are gone now. We are literally facing the end of humanity and you want to stand on principle?" Coberg raged

"He won't tell us anything unless we force him to."

"If our opening move is force, then that's a self fulfilling prophesy," I replied but the words rang hollow in my ears. I didn't want to listen to what he said, I know it's the wrong thing to do but if there was no other way? I'm not sure what I would've done, the General was like Saren back at the refinery, reaching for the ruthless option immediately. I'd never begin that way but would that mean I was giving the prisoner a chance or just trying to delay the hard choice awhile longer? I had a massive headache throbbing behind my eyes making it hard to think, already I could hear some of the crowd wanting to start up the argument again.

"Whatever's going to be done, it'll be done by me. I'll interrogate the prisoner." I heard myself say. Good word that, 'Interrogate', not as harsh as torture or as gentle as interview. 'Nice and ambiguous, could go either way that word,' I thought cursing the situation I had found myself in, from what I'd heard Cerberus operatives didn't break easily.

So in less than an hour I found myself sitting across a desk from the prisoner. We'd been lucky he hadn't been given obedience implants or interrogation would have been a waste of time. My strategy in these situations is always straight forward, remain calm, dispassionate, detached. Nothing the prisoner says can affect you because that would mean he has power over you.

Examine the person sitting across from you carefully. See everything, pay attention to the details, his appearance, his body language, the expression on his face. Everything you see helps build an impression of the man (or woman) you're dealing with. Don't ignore your first impressions, instinct can often tell you things you've only spotted on a sub-conscious level but don't rely upon them too heavily either. Ideally I would already have access to a vast amount of intel about the subject. Always learn everything you can before speaking for the first time.

In this case? The prisoner was young, early to mid twenties I would guess. No scars or injuries to speak of except for a slight cut on his right cheek. It could be from a fall but my guess is he cut himself shaving (not uncommon when in a high stress environment like a war zone. You can worry so much you stop paying attention to what you're doing). He'd been wearing Cerberus armor which we'd confiscated, designed for an engineer. He'd kept himself in reasonably fit shape but I wouldn't have marked him as a frontline soldier. And he was nervous, that much was plain from the expression on his face.

A good start, hopeful in many ways but I had to be careful. It could all be an act, to make himself look like an easier target than he really was and garner useful sympathy from the interrogator. Still I had to start somewhere so I opened with:

"Officially you've been charged with terrorist offenses against the Alliance and humanity."

I saw his eyes widen in shock, good. I took no pleasure in torturing the boy but sometimes you have to make them understand they're facing serious consequences.

"It's a shame really, given your academic record you could have done so much with your life. And you've thrown it away to join Cerberus."

I was guessing here, we didn't have any record of the kid not even his name but it doesn't hurt to imply you know more than you actually do. It's a gamble that can backfire badly if they call you out on it but he was young and already an engineer, I figured I was playing the odds.

"The whole world's at war, I had to do something!"

I nodded slowly as if considering his argument.

"Of course you did. As I recall Commander Shepard was once in a position to make the same choice and did the same thing as you. Maybe you heard about that? The Commander regrets his decision back then, he felt he didn't have a choice. But you do have one now."

"They'll kill me, you don't know what they can do."

"You know it's the right thing to do and we'll protect you once you've told us the truth."

And on and on it went, sympathizing with his situation, calling on his sense of duty, making subtle threats about the consequences of his actions when I had to. He was in tears by the end, not exactly my finest hour. But he did tell me what I wanted to know, a location for Dr. Serov's research lab. God only knows what kind of fresh hell he's brewing up in there but we're going to be shutting him down, permanently.

We set out the next day for the location our guest had provided us with. I'd woken up with a headache again, the rest of the previous day hadn't gone very well (got to bed at one in the morning, far too tired to write anything). The General had tried to insist on having access to the prisoner after I had finished interrogating him to "verify" the information.

Given the prisoner was barely more than a boy (and I was fairly sure he'd told me the truth having been pulled into something far worse than he'd ever planned on) I'd decided to spare him the General's attentions. Coberg was furious at my refusal (or just at not being in charge any more generally) but I managed to convince him that I'd done what needed to be done myself. This in turn left Lara scandalized at the suggestion that I was willing to stoop to such levels to get information. Trying to reassure her that I hadn't would only serve to give the General more excuse to do so himself.

I found myself going back and forth between the two throughout the evening playing diplomat. The truth is I needed the support of both of them in this fight. The General was widely respected in Earth military circles prior to the war. News of his survival and rescue had already convinced surviving army officers of various countries to co-ordinate with us. On the other hand Lara's small network of Justicars around the globe brought hope to millions. The Justicar's legendary status allowed them to inspire resistance fighters in a way no one else really could (OK maybe Shepard could but he's currently assigned to help some scientist on the Citadel look for something called the 'Leviathan of Dis'. Hackett claims it could help with the war but it sounds like a wild goose chase to me). The latest reports suggested that Singapore was only holding on thanks to the presence of a Justicar. As I understood it she was keeping the fighting spirit alive while the Reapers burned the city street by street.

But in trying to placate everyone I only ended up aggravating both sides. Needless to say I went to bed feeling pretty angry and frustrated myself that night. It feels like a bad omen, a night like that just before we head out on a raid but we can't stay here either way. The Reapers were getting close as we prepared to leave (we'd actually abandoned the main Seattle base at this stage and hidden in a small safe house).

Not many of us were left at that stage, two dozen at most standing around in someone's house. It was a strange contrast, us ambling around in battlearmour carrying rifles among the forgotten laundry and other everyday clutter, a half eaten meal on the table downstairs. This had been someone's house once. Abandoned with no signs of violence it was like a final monument to the concept an ordinary life that was rapidly disappearing. I wondered briefly who might've lived here before we arrived and if they were still alive.

Not the kind of place you'd expect to be planning an assault on a terrorist organization from certainly but that's what we were doing.

"We're establishing an encampment just a few miles east of the city, you should really come with us Admiral, you don't know what you might come up against." Said Colonel Travis.

"That's true, it's also why we're going," I replied. "We'll take our small force and scout out the area, find out what Cerberus has waiting for us. Once we have a clearer picture of the situation we can plan our next move."

"Our next move being an assault on these Cerberus bastards," Coberg grunted.

"You won't hear any argument from me," I said before turning to face the crowd of assembled officers.

"Anyone volunteering to join this mission raise your hand."

Predictably Will's hand was the first to go up, followed not long after by his father Jeff who looked rather less keen. I was distracted from this however when to my surprise Xi Chan raised his hand as well.

"Are you sure about this? It'll probably be dangerous."

"I've heard that Cerberus likes to keep a lot of technological tricks up their sleeve. You could use someone on your side that knows a few."

Last of all Lara T'Ren and General Coberg raised their hands.

"The code requires that the unjust be punished, Cerberus fits that criteria."

I glanced at the General.

"What? You're expecting a speech from me too? Let's just get on with it."

"Alright then, you all know what to do. Safe travels to you and your men Colonel, everyone else with me. General I need a word with you before we leave."

I led Coberg outside so that we could get some privacy. When I was sure we wouldn't be overheard by those inside I turned to face him.

"Am I about to get a dressing down Admiral?"

"I'd cut the jokes if I were you," I said, giving him a look that made it clear that I was serious.

There was a full minute of tense silence before the General replied. I had anticipated him getting angry, maybe even throwing a few punches when I tried to lay down the law. To my surprise he backed down instead.

"Alright, I'm sorry. Old habits can be hard to break."

"I need to know if I can trust you in future and that you won't cause me more problems than you solve. That nonsense with the prisoner yesterday..."

"You killed two Reapers at Vancouver, you rescued me from that godforsaken place. You've proven that you're the right man to lead this fight so I'll follow you wherever you lead. Hell I'll even make nice with the Asari if those are your orders."

He saluted me and then after more assurances went back to the others to prepare for the mission. That had gone better than expected but I worried he had simply told me what he thought I wanted to hear. Unfortunately I didn't have time to stand around worrying about it. We needed to get going before the Reapers arrived.

We set out in a brisk march northwards as early as we could after that. The intel we had said that the base was on the north bank of the Skagit river, where it gets close to Lake Shannon. Traveling (more or less) direct it would be about 65 miles to reach our destination or about three days (plus any time wasted hiding from Reaper patrols). The conditions were still good (although there were some storm clouds ahead) and I settled into the long haul, ignoring the Reapers descending on Seattle behind me.

Before long Jeff walked up alongside me.

"Can I speak with you for a minute?"

"Of course, what's on your mind?"

"I'm worried about Will."

I opened my mouth to speak but Jeff interrupted me.

"I know he has a right to help defend us just like everyone else. I know he'd be a target even if he didn't have a weapon in his hand and that it might be better if he learns how to protect himself."

"But?"

"Ever since he was a little boy he's only ever wanted to help other people. To be a hero to them if he could."

"He's a good person."

"He is a very good person and I'm afraid what it might cost him. I've seen him when he's around the other soldiers, always pushing himself, trying to outdo men who've been training for this sort of thing for years. He never stops trying to help and he never thinks about himself first."

I closed my eyes, feeling guilty at his words. He was right of course, I'd seen it as well in the way he rushed into a collapsing building to try and rescue more people. I'd been concerned at the time but it hadn't properly registered with me until his father explained it that matter of fact tone. Will might well be the very, very best out of all of us and this war might well destroy him. I made a promise then to Jeff and to myself, one I never thought I'd hear myself making. I promised that Will would come back home to his mother when all of this was over.

I've never made that sort of promise before because in combat there are no guarantees. You can't be certain that anyone you're bringing into the fight will walk away again. But this is one life I will not let the Reapers have. I've seen enough children die, enough families destroyed. I'll make sure that Will goes home, even if it kills me.


	22. Log 19

Log 19

Date: 3RD NOV 2186

Location: CONCRETE, WASHINGTON, USA

In the end we reached our destination on the morning of the fifth day of our expedition (I'd like to blame that entirely on Reaper patrols but actually we just got lost for half a day). We had marched through much of the previous night (before finally succumbing to a few hours sleep) so we were surprised to see the mountains rising up ahead of us the following morning.

As we came out of the trees we saw the river (and helpfully an intact bridge) and beyond that the town of Concrete (don't ask me where they get these names from). According to our information Cerberus had taken over the town and set up a headquarters near the airport. We stayed on the south bank for awhile trying to scope out the area but enemy activity in the vicinity was nonexistent.

Either I'd been fed false information or Cerberus was keeping its presence here very low key. Plausible enough I supposed, if they were developing some kind of new weapon (or supersoldier) here they may well be trying to avoid drawing any attention to it. I decided to order the unit to proceed over the bridge and sweep in towards the town. As we approached we fanned out, moving slowly. I was feeling cautious at this stage, the town was empty of civilians as we'd been told to expect but there were no Cerberus defenses in place either.

We scanned the path ahead with every step looking for traps, tripwires, even landmines. With Cerberus any of them could've been a possibility. We'd passed the airport and were getting close to the high school complex when the attack started. Cerberus had placed dozens of turrets in a defensive formation around one of the main buildings. Once we got close enough they all opened fire and left us scrabbling for cover before our shields could be depleted.

Most of us ended up crouched behind a large airbus that had seemingly crashed in the middle of the street. We had been the lucky ones, a few others had panicked and tried to make it back to the buildings behind us. Their shields were shredded and a couple of them were left with gunshot wounds. They didn't look too bad from where I was sitting but it was hard to tell at this distance. At one end of the bus Lara tried to unleash a biotic strike at one of the turrets but it just frazzled away as it hit its shields. At the other end the General wasn't having much more luck. He had a shotgun was taking opportunistic pot shots at the turrets whenever they swung away from his cover. A decent tactic but he wasn't doing much damaged to the heavily armored turrets.

"Take down the shields, then leave them to Lara," I shouted.

Coberg looked at me coolly for a moment but then nodded and begun concentrating his fire on one of the turrets. A short while later he called out a target to the Justicar and I heard a crashing sound as the turret was smashed to bits. A good start but there were still about twenty left so I looked for a way to climb on top of the bus so I could join the fight until Xi Chan pulled me back.

"You brought me here to deal with Cerberus's tricks."

"Any ideas?"

"Take this, press the button and throw," he said handing me a small black device about the size of my fist. "At the enemy," he added in case there was any confusion.

"Grenade!" I yelled, hurling it over our temporary barricade and into the ranks of the turrets. I ducked low behind the barricade and waited for the explosion.

And waited.

After awhile I looked up at Xi Chan who had an odd expression on his face.

"That err, that wasn't a grenade, was it?"

"No Admiral, it was a prototype comms device I created."

Xi Chan explained patiently.

"Then why have me throw it at them?"

"Take a look and see for yourself sir."

When I took a look I saw a scene of chaos, a firefight still but now mostly between the different turrets. Turning against each other they had laid waste to their own side within minutes leaving the surviving few easily picked off. I glanced at the Salarian eyebrows raised.

"It was nothing really Admiral. According to Alliance intelligence the turrets use a simple to signal to identify themselves as non-hostile to other turrets. I simply used the communicator to block that signal."

Simple enough to understand even for a military man like me but the results certainly had us all shocked. Even Lara had a look of surprise on her face as she viewed the carnage. She turned and gave the Salarian a nod of respect before leading us onwards into the building itself.

Surprisingly enough I was starting to relax at this stage .If the base had still been populated a guards force should have been sent to pick us off while we were pinned down by the turrets. Clearly this base had been abandoned by Cerberus, the only question was, would there be anything here left for us to find?

We pushed through the school corridors, each step only serving to confirm my suspicions about the place. We encountered more turrets but each was alone and no match for our firepower. Frustratingly the turrets were the only sign that Cerberus had ever been here at all. Clearly whoever had been here had done a careful job of removing anything of strategic value. Fortunately our informant had let us know of a basement level that had served as a command center of the base.

We made our way there, taking the slow creaking elevator to the bottom floor. As soon as the doors opened the smell hit us. An ungodly reek of death and decay that seemed to assault the senses. With my helmet still on I was spared the worst of it but the others were less fortune. Even the Justicar was almost on her knees. Eventually they all donned helmets or ripped up clothing to hold over their faces. Anything to hold back the stench.

We couldn't see into the chamber ahead at first. There were some dim lights in the elevator and beyond that total darkness. Some of us had torches built into our helmets and amour, thin pale beams that barely cut into the black sea before us. We moved slowly now, the confidence of our victories above gone. Logically I knew the the place must be abandoned but entering this dungeon filled me with dread. Still worse we had been left alone here with the dead.

They were piled on top of metal benches around the room. It was hard to see but I caught sight of medical equipment and restraints near by. I heard a gasp of alarm and turned around quickly, raising my rifle to fire. It was Will, his face white as a sheet. He had just accidentally stumbled across more bodies, mostly alien hanging from the ceiling on meat hooks. More evidence of their hatred of non human species and their indifference to most of humanity.

Sometimes I wonder if Cerberus has any real interest in science. Sights like this make you wonder if their goal isn't just to make as many real life nightmares as they can. Clearly there was some kind of medical experimentation going on here. What kind? I honestly didn't care at that stage. Cerberus's work was monstrous, it was always monstrous in the end. And the contempt shown for these people by leaving their bodies dumped like this as they abandoned this base to continue their work elsewhere? It sickened me.

I want Cerberus destroyed. I want everything they've ever done exposed and then to destroy them utterly as a warning to anyone who even contemplates these evil experiments in the future. The Illusive Man has called Shepard the best of humanity, I wonder if he ever realized that he was the worst of it?

So I pushed forward through the room full of corpses determined to find something that would help end Cerberus. We broke through a security door at the far end of the room. No stench or corpses this time, a pristine workplace in front of us, desks replete with state of the art computer systems. A comfortable, civilized place to work away from the butchery next door.

There was more light in this room, it was spilling out across the room from a terminal in the corner that was still switched on. To my surprise I could make out a shadow next to the console that looked suspiciously like a person. Well I wasn't going to take any chances (god knows what sort of human shaped monsters might be lurking in an abandoned Cerberus base) I signaled the others to circle around and we approached the figure from all sides. As we closed in he sensed our approach and turned round so we quickly moved in to surround him. Once he'd turned to face us however I recognized him instantly, it was Dr Serov.

He seemed as shocked to see us as we were to see him but that arrogant smirk never stayed off his face for long.

"Well, well so you managed to break your prisoner even faster than I anticipated Admiral. My congratulations, is he still breathing incidentally?" he remarked.

"He gave you up Serov. Looking at this place I'm surprised they don't all turn on you."

"Hmm you just can't get the staff these days," he tutted. "I should have had him implanted like the others but I still need a few workers with their brains intact."

I wanted to kill him so badly I could feel it like a physical pain in my chest, a burning sensation on my face. But the information he could give the Alliance might help end this nightmare so I leveled my rifle at his chest and managed not to pull the trigger.

"You're being taken into custody. We'll escort you to a resistance base for interrogation."

"Oh really Admiral? I seem to recall I escaped your grip easily enough last time. What makes you think I'll allow you to take me anywhere?"

I nodded in Lara T'Ren's direction.

"That's a Justicar over there and this time she'll be ready for you. Even you're not fast enough to evade her biotics."

"And she's not the only one you need to contend with," muttered Coberg.

The doctor nodded slowly, looking around the rest of the group for the first time.

"Well it's quite a motley crew you've assembled Admiral. But perhaps you do have a point," he said raising his hands in surrender before turning to face Lara.

"You know when I was first informed that the Justicar Order had come to Earth I could scarcely believe it. I think I should look into capturing afew of your sisters soon. With the right enhancements and a control chip implanted in your brain your warriors might make quite a formidable bodyguard for me."

He chuckled at the thought of it.

"You're insane," whispered Jeff.

"Admiral please keep the little people quiet for now, they are an annoying distraction from our conversation."

"You can enjoy the rest of it from inside a resistance cell," said Coberg. "You're coming with us."

"Oh I'm afraid I can't do that General," he replied.

"Yeah? Let's see if I can persuade you." the General raised his own rifle and fired a shot that went straight through the doctor's shoulder and smashed the screen in the terminal behind him.

When I say 'straight through' I'm not trying to suggest the shot went into his shoulder and out the other side. No it went straight through him because there was nothing there to hit. If I'd thought the doctor had been laughing at us before he was falling into hysterics now.

"I told you I 'can't' do that not I 'won't' do it General," he crowed. "I'm afraid I'm not actually here!"

I understood, it had only been a projection similar to our own comm devices albeit far more sophisticated than anything I had ever seen before (that said the darkness undoubtedly helped conceal the deception). Even now with the trick revealed I could almost believe he was standing right in front of us.

"You planned this trap the whole time?"

"Really Admiral you flatter me. No I had no idea my agent would be captured or give me up so easily. But when you triggered the defenses upstairs I became aware of your efforts. I then set up this pleasant little meeting for your benefit. Really I think my improvisation should be commended but that said I had been hoping to buy a little more time."

"We need to move," I said abruptly.

"Rushing off already Admiral? You should really stay and take your time more. Quite apart from anything else you're all going to die when you get back up there so I can't really see why you're in such a hurry to face the end."

"Why would you attack us? We're not Reapers we're human beings. It's insane!" shouted Jeff.

"Oh I've upset the little people again. Come to think of it you're from that little town called..." the doctor frowned for a moment and peered at something outside the projection field.

"Welcome? Huh I like that sound of that. Almost a shame I sent a aha 'Welcoming committee' over there."

"All this tragedy and you still attack your own kind," said Lara her disgust clearly evident on her face.

"Oh I needed more subjects for my experiments and the so called resistance helpfully gathered them in one place for me."

"You bastard!" screamed Jeff while Will made a lunge towards the projection. I grabbed him and tried to hold him still so that he could calm down.

"We have to move!" I roared again determined to get them moving out of there before Serov could spring whatever he had planned for us.

"Oops, too late," sneered Serov before pointing to something behind us. We all turned in the direction he was pointing and that's when I saw it for the first time: An adjutant.

I recognized it from the Alliance intel we'd been sent but I'd never imagined ending up face to face with one. The first thing that draws the eye is the strange bulbous growth on its head like a massive blue balloon. Then you see the face below, the tendrils dripping from where its mouth should be, the blue flashlight eyes. With no features that are even remotely human it should be able to look angry but you see a face filled with hate. Its body is encased in black metal armor with wires and tubes sticking out in odd places like a Reaper soldier. In places of its right arm, a cannon surgically attached and fused with the flesh. All these observations I remember recalling afterwards, at the time my mind was consumed with just one thought.

"Kill it!"

We poured everything we had against the monster, shots rained down on it like hail. As it charged at us biotic explosion impacted its chest and knocked it back. But still it moved forward, absorbing the punishment, driven by a mindless obsession to destroy.

We were shouting now, swearing at it in fear and anger. It stood only a few steps from me. At that moment all I was, was my gun. I couldn't plan or strategise or dream up any clever way of beating this thing. All I could do was keep firing until this abomination went away.

Fortunately our assault ultimately proved too much for it and it collapsed under the weight of its wounds before it could strike. I almost collapsed in exhaustion from the relief of that moment but instead I steeled myself and told myself to start acting like a soldier again.

"Hmm a useful if somewhat disappointing demonstration. Thank you in any case,+ it should prove invaluable in designing upgrades. Now then I have work to do and watching you die would only be a distraction." With that the projection switched off leaving us in near total darkness.

"We have to get out of here and warn the village about the attack," said Jeff.

"We don't know how many more monsters Cerberus has waiting for us up top," warned Coberg.

"Nor can we say with certainty how many more might still be down here with us," stated Lara calmly.

"Lara's right, we can't stay here. We'd be fools if we thought we could shelter in a Cerberus base from this attack."

"So what's the plan then?" Asked Coberg.

"We hit them with everything we've got just like we did with the last one," I replied indicating the Adjutant corpse behind us.

"Don't focus on fighting the enemy, when we see an exit we just go hell for leather."

Coberg looked blank.

"It means run as fast as possible. If we hit them hard enough we may be able to catch them off guard and escape."

"A slim chance," noted the General. "But probably the best chance we've got."

"We're with you," said Jeff indicating the rest of the group.

"Come on then, let's do this."

We hurried back through this dungeon and piled into the elevator (which was just as slow moving as ever and slightly ruined the momentum of our charge. The cheery music didn't help either). Once we got to the top we broke out of the school and charged.

Absolute pandemonium, that's the only way I can describe our escape. As soon as we left the school more Adjutants began emerging from the buildings, the abandoned vehicles, anywhere they could hide. We'd switched to shotguns for maximum stopping power which was just as well because within seconds an Adjutant jumped down from the roof in front of us. A couple of shots him it square in the chest and it went down, we ran past before it could stand again.

We sprinted onwards but as fast as we were the creatures were so much faster. They bounded after us, closing on us easily, only falling behind when they pounced on one of us and dragged him down. Our squad were being picked off one at a time but all we could do was keep moving. One of the abominations jumped right into our midst and Lara stabbed an omniblade deep into its bulbous head. It fell back and we didn't wait to see if it would get back up again. Ahead of us lay a line of houses, now bristling with Adjutants. We waded through, hurling grenades and powerful biotic attacks ahead of us to cause maximum damage. As the enemy closed with us we switched to guns, omniblades, knives anything to hold them back as we pushed through.

Eventually we broke through into the trees where the Adjutants size gave us the advantage in speed as they struggled to maneuver through the thick undergrowth. We stayed in the safety of the woods as long as we could but eventually we ran out of forest and burst out into the sunlight. Thankfully the bridge was now in sight, if we could reach it we might have more options. We could use it to funnel the Adjutants into scope or try to bring it down to block them from following us.

Unfortunately Cerberus had the same idea and as soon as we got anywhere near the bridge they detonated charges that ripped it apart. I sometimes ask myself why Cerberus didn't wait until we were on the bridge before blowing it up. Maybe it was a malfunction or they were worried that some of us might make it to the other side but I think it was the human factor. The good doctor didn't want to give us such a quick, merciful death. Like a bad sci-fi villain he wanted to prolong our pain and suffering, to make us feel helpless before the end. I have to admit he was succeeding on the helpless front. Without wanting to sound melodramatic I really did think we were all going to die that day.

The bridge was gone, we were being backed into a corner by the river and Adjutants were flooding in from all directions. If we tried to wade across the river we'd be picked off before we made it half way, if we tried to fight we'd be torn apart. The Adjutants were acting like a pack now, herding us into this trap, surrounding us and holding back until they were ready to strike. Their mistake was waiting just a bit too long.

Suddenly from above came a hailstorm of incoming fire pouring down on the adjutants. I looked up to see a military shuttle overhead its weapons more than a match for ground forces. Some of the Adjutants tried fighting back but they simply didn't have the firepower to breach the ship's kinetic barriers. The rest tried to charge at us, throwing themselves across the field trying to get past the bombardment and do some last damage before the battle was over. Some of them made it but most didn't and the few that survived faced an angry and heavily armed squad waiting for them. It was a short, brutal fight but in the end the tide had been turned.

When he ran out of targets he could hit from the air the pilot landed the shuttle and joined us on foot. That's when I got the biggest shock of the day (so far), it was Daniels.

Private Daniels who had been with me since the beginning until he gave his life to draw the Reapers away from us or so I had thought. Now he was closing on our position with a sniper rifle, using the powerful gun to pick off the remaining Adjutants (he couldn't have hit them from the shuttle for fear of blowing us up too). I was astonished, I finished off the two nearest Adjutants and raced towards him.

"How?"

Daniels shrugged in a noncommittal way.

"Wasn't too difficult, I managed to stay ahead of them for awhile in the Hammerhead then found somewhere quiet to hop out and set the autopilot to make it fly straight into the Reaper's fire first chance it got. They saw me die so there wasn't much point wasting time searching."

I just stared in disbelief.

"Okay there was more to it than that but that's the gist of it. I spent a few days hiding and joined up with a civilian. Said he was a former Alliance officer called Alenko I think. He helped me evade the Reaper patrols but uh- he, he died saving me."

"How did you find us?" I asked glancing behind me. The battle was still going on but it seemed Coberg and Lara had the situation under control at this stage and were just mopping up the last few.

"I never managed to get near the base in Seattle in the end. You were the only one that knew the exact location and there were too many Reaper troops in that direction anyway so I headed back to Welcome and eventually they got word that you were headed here and might need backup."

"We're going to need to get back there as soon as possible, is that shuttle still good for a return trip?"

Daniels nodded. "Should be, those things didn't do much damage when they-"

At that moment he was cut of by a bellowing shout. It was coming from Will, his father was on his back grappling with the last of the Adjutants. I started racing towards them cursing myself for getting distracted even for a moment. Lara got there first and drove her omniblade into the side of its head. I relaxed and slowed down as the Justicar began to drag the creature off of Jeff but its weapon still fired. Twice.

When I heard those shots, I felt them like they had passed through my own body. Time slowed to a crawl as I raced towards the man, lying there in a pool of his own blood. I was heading towards him but all my mind wanted to do was get the hell away from there. To be anywhere but near Jeff Stevenson as he died next to his son.

I went to kneel beside him but Lara held me back. I turned to her in anger.

"Where's the hell's the damn Medi gel? We have to-"

"We don't have any left Admiral," she replied.

"And it wouldn't do him any good even if we did," grunted the General.

For a moment I felt absolute rage towards him, I wanted to smash his face in, to hit him over and over and over. Then Jeff looked at me and washed all of that away.

I'll remember that look for the rest of my life. He tried to speak but the blast impact had crushed his chest, he couldn't manage it. I'm still not sure what I saw in his eyes that day, hatred? Blame? Or just a reminder of the promise I'd made to him. He soon turned to look at Will who wasn't saying anything, just sobbing over his father's body. Jeff never stopped looking at him until he died. He struggled at the end, like he was fighting with death for even one more second to see his son's face before he went.

That's how I'll remember the man if anyone ever asks me. He was never made to be a soldier, never meant for this life. He fought for his son, he killed for his son and when the end came he even held off death to stay with his son a little longer. Jeff Stevenson was a good man, he has become my role model and he is everything that I want to be for my own son.

* * *

 **Sorry this was slightly late. This death scene was a hard bit to write so please review!**


	23. Log 20

Log 20

Date: 4TH NOV 2186

Location: UNKNOWN

"Can't this thing go any faster?"

We had buried Jeff back in the forest near Concrete. There wasn't time for a proper ceremony after the doctor's threat but we made sure his body wouldn't be dishonored. I thought Will would want to say a few words but he simply demanded we head back to his village.

We had already tried reaching them on the comm but all the channels were being scrabbled(we didn't have a QEC available). So instead we had all squeezed aboard Daniel's shuttle and set course back to the village of Welcome at top speed.

Inside the shuttle the mood was tense. The shuttle wasn't designed to hold so many so conditions were cramped and many of us were mourning the loss of at least one comrade after the results of that ambush had been tallied up. Five dead (about a quarter of the entire squad) and three more injured. I was in the cockpit acting as copilot for Daniels but I could still sense the hostility particularly from Will.

"Sit down," I called back. "If we try to go any faster we'll burn out the engines before we get there."

"And it'd be harder for you to write that stupid book," muttered Will.

Well okay maybe it hadn't been the most appropriate moment but it helped clear my head and make sense of everything that had happened during the ambush. If the village was under siege when we arrived I would need to be focused.

Will was riled up and looking for a fight with anyone. I couldn't blame him, he'd lost his father and his entire village was now probably under attack. But in his current state of mind he was a danger to himself and others, particularly when we were about to face Cerberus. Given the option I would've left him behind but it hadn't really been practical (who could say if there were any of those monsters still left back there). Now I faced a nightmare situation, under normal circumstances Will wouldn't be allowed within a hundred miles of this battle but I couldn't see any way of avoiding it. I decided on trying to confront the problem now, it would still be bad but dealing with it in the middle of a war zone would be worse.

"Do we have a problem son?" I asked.

"You let my father die while you were busy chatting to your new best friend."

Well nothing like cutting to the chase from the start. I lowered my head in acknowledgment of his words.

"I don't think it would have affected the outcome-" Xi Chan began saying before I silenced him with a look.

"I'm sorry Will, I let myself get distracted. I- I thought we had won, I'm sorry."

"What good does that do him now?"

"I liked your father Will, he was honest and hardworking and he cared for his family more than anything else. He didn't deserve to die that way."

"Die what way exactly? What the hell were those things?"

Oh boy this was not going to be a good discussion but they all deserved to know what they were up against.

"A new Cerberus weapon. It's based on a Reaper virus that," I paused for a moment unwilling to continue.

"That what?"

"That transforms suitable hosts into those things we fought. They're called adjutants."

"Suitable hosts Admiral?" prompted Xi Chan.

"Humans," I began dully "Asari, Turians, Salarians, most sentient species in fact."

They was a short silence in the shuttle as they all

"We were fighting people?" Daniels wondered aloud.

"So Cerberus is no better than the Reapers then," was General Coberg's reaction.

But Will's reaction was by far the worst.

"Serov said he wanted to take the villagers for experiments..." he whispered and I could see the horror rising in his eyes. "Those creatures we fought... were they?"

"No," I said firmly. "Daniels just flew here directly from Welcome. There's no way they could have been from your village."

"But it's still going to happen to them isn't it? That's what Serov wants them for."

"We're going to stop him. But I need you to stay focused and be careful."

"Careful!"

"I promised your father that I'd keep you safe. It was one of the last things we talked about before he died. I know you're angry but keep your head down. I've already lost one of you to this war, I'm not losing you too."

I turned round to face Daniels again hoping my pep talk (probably the wrong word to describe it) had helped somewhat.

"How long 'till we get there?"

"We've passed over the mountains now, I'd say about ten more minutes."

I turned my attention back to the view ahead watching as the village rolled into sight. It was immediately apparent that the siege had already begun. Cerberus had brought a small army to launch the assault and the was a hailstorm of fire being exchanged between groups of Cerberus fighters and the increasingly surrounded resistance who were sheltered in the nearby buildings. I could see three main groups attacking the settlement. There were two smaller flanking groups (about thirty to forty odd each) made up of ordinary Cerberus fighters. Those groups were trying to distract the enemy, using heavy armored troops to shield them while their snipers targeted anyone they could see.

The third, far larger group was making a frontal assault, attempting to push its way into the heart of the village where most of the civilians would be hidden away. That army consisted of Cerberus fighters (many), Adjutants (several more than I'd ever wanted to see again) but front and center were the Atlases. The Atlas is Cerberus's most heavy duty ground assault unit. Essentially no less than a walking tank, each one is equipped with a rocket launcher to attack large enemies and a chain gun to rip apart smaller targets. Not to mention its heavy armor and shielding. There were eight Atlases on the field, probably every single one Serov had but more than enough to crush any resistance in their path.

They soon began to notice our arrival and a rocket shot up to greet us. Daniels swerved wildly and managed to avoid getting us blown out of the sky. He opened fire on the offending Atlas and reduced it to scrap metal within seconds.

Unfortunately this caught the attention of the rest of the Atlases who turned on us like a pack of wolves finding new prey. This time they unleashed a lethal rain of incoming fire from their chain guns. Daniels did his best but there was no way to avoid all the incoming vectors of attack and our kinetic barriers were being wiped out.

"Land it!" I shouted at him.

Daniel tried to bring it down in a controlled landing within the siege perimeter but the enemy guns were relentless. I heard one of the engines explode and realized the kinetic barriers would fail within minutes.

"Just get it on the ground!" I roared at him.

Daniels landed the shuttle on the edges of the village and we all raced to get out of the ship before it was destroyed. Most of us left via the rear entrance and scrabbled for cover. Will on the other hand left out of the front and charged directly at the attacking force. Well so much for nipping the problem in the bud. Cursing I sprinted after him, tackling him to the ground just as a rocket shot over our heads and destroyed the shuttle. I grabbed Will by the arm and dragged him up, pulling him with me as we headed for cover. I didn't care how much I was hurting him now, I just needed to get him out of the line of fire.

We broke into a nearby house, two Cerberus troopers were already there but I caught them off guard with my shotgun. After that was finished I turned to Will, startling him with my fury.

"You want to die out here son? You pull a stunt like that again and I'll let you."

"I have to find my mother!" he cried out before shouting in alarm as I knocked him to the ground. I then signaled a couple of men to join us in the house.

"I am going to find her Will. And when I do can you tell me how I explain to her that I let you get yourself killed?" I asked him harshly, to my shame achieving exactly the kind of shocked response I'd been going for.

"These men are going to see that you stay here. If he puts one foot outside that door, shoot him in the leg, understood?"

Seeing that escape was hopeless Will grimly picked up his rifle and took aim through one of the windows. He sighted on a Cerberus soldier running into one of the nearby buildings and the target went down with a hole in the side of his head. I nodded my approval hoping desperately that he would do anything else stupid. I hated myself for leaving him there (so much so that it was like a physical pain in my chest) but I couldn't take him with me into the heavier fighting in his current state and I couldn't stay with him myself without abandoning my duty. Trying to clear my head of all the horrifying scenarios that could befall Will while I was gone, I gathered the rest of the men and entered the fray.

We were still cut off from the main force but it did mean that the flanking squad attacking from the east was now facing a fight on two fronts. The battle lines collapsed into a confused mess as my squad entered the fray. I needed to break through the enemy lines so I could find out what the situation was. I called several of my men to me and made to charge through. Lara, Daniels and Coberg fell in behind me and we were able to skirt round the enemy squad only facing the occasional combatant. We hit some issues along the way, a turret set up on a narrow corridor we had to detour round, one time we rounded a corner and came face to face with an Adjutant (not a pleasant experience on a number of levels not to mention a shock. In the end Lara froze it in place with a biotic barrier and the General left it afew grenades as a souvenir).

When we finally did break through our situation didn't improve much. We were now standing in the main target area, explosions thundered around us as we raced to try and find someone in charge. Unfortunately in a battle there's rarely an opportunity to ask anyone for directions. Well we did ask the soldiers but in the confusion none of them had any real idea. Still after getting lost in the ruins (twice) and having a brief argument over where to look (which ended when another Adjutant jumped us) we finally located Colonel Travis and Major Coats. They were huddled in a small building near the front which had been hastily fortified against incoming fire. The others stayed outside and joined the fighting while myself and Daniels went inside.

As we approached both officers stood up and saluted me.

"Good to see you back sir," said Coats. "As you can see we're in a bit of a situation."

"How bad is it?" I asked.

The Colonel exchanged glances with the Major but she then decided to lead the briefing.

"We're keeping the enemy back sir but only just. We're holding the perimeter for the moment but Cerberus keeps sending troops and those creatures to slip through our lines and wear us down."

"I'm surprised they haven't tried to punch through with their heavy weapons," I remarked. The Colonel gave me a smile.

"They've been trying but we've had a fair while to prepare this area for an assault," she explained. She then pointed to the map in front of her.

"Most of the larger buildings in the center have been equipped with kinetic barriers and cannons. Xi Chan managed to salvage them from the shuttles we bought from Vancouver after we started to run out of fuel to use them all. We're sheltering all of the noncombatants there as well."

I nodded. "They'll keep pushing us though, how long do you think we can keep them at bay?"

"Hopefully until reinforcements arrive? We managed to get word to another resistance cell not far from here before Cerberus blocked communications."

"So we hold out here until help arrives?"

The two officers exchanged glances again.

"What are you not telling me?"

"Some of the kinetic barriers we took from the shuttle aren't functioning properly, including the one around the generator building that powers all of our defenses."

"You didn't think to check them?"

"The fault was very subtle, the affected units work just not well enough to do any good. Whoever sabotaged them clearly knew what they were doing."

"Sabotage?"

"We think it was done on the original shuttles back in Vancouver."

I suddenly noticed my headache had flared up again, I pulled my helmet off and rubbed my eyes in tiredness and frustration. I like to think I'm not a violent man, a man of action yes but I don't reveal in causing pain. That said if I ever learned who had betrayed us at Vancouver? Well indoctrinated or not that man would pay dearly for what he's done.

"Is the generator secure?"

"We don't know, we've been cut off from that area since the attack. We've heard sounds of fighting in that direction but it's hard to say how they're holding up."

"We have to get more troops through to support them."

"We need to be careful Cerberus may not actually be aware of the value of that target yet. If we launch a major assault we risk alerting them." warned Major Coats.

"We could try splitting up," suggested Daniels. "Smaller groups might stand a better chance of getting through without alerting suspicion."

I nodded.

"Let's get on with this before Cerberus find out they've already won the battle."

We went outside and explained the situation, I decided not to mention the possible sabotage for the time being.

"Two teams of three" I said. "Xi Chan and Lara will come with me. Daniels is the only other one that might be able to repair the defenses so he goes with the General and Major Coats."

"Can we hold the building with just the six of us?" asked the General critically.

"We don't have many other options. If Cerberus finds out about this target and throws their full force at it we can't defend it. It's too far outside our perimeter, our best chance is to take out any Cerberus troops nearby and bunker down inside. Maybe Cerberus won't focus on that building before our reinforcements arrive."

"And if they do?"

I didn't bother to answer, we all knew if Cerberus learned the six of us were all that was preventing their victory, we would die.

"I know its desperate but that's what we were in for from the beginning in this war. Let's just get it done."

"Yeah but that was meant to mean fighting Reapers," muttered Coberg before leading his party away.

We made it through the enemy perimeter much more easily this this time. Cerberus wasn't focused on this area so a small group could get past. Unfortunately the building itself was a different story. Cerberus's army had swept through here wiping out the resistance as they went. Worse yet we could see several troopers were still there through the windows. Xi Chan explained that the generator had been hidden behind a false wall but that Cerberus would have scanners that would still find it pretty quickly.

"Wait here for the other team, I'll clear out those troops."

"I would be the logical choice to go Admiral, I am the stronger warrior," Lara stated matter of factly. Was I going to argue that point? Fat chance. I'd already dismissed the possibility of arguing fighting ability with a Justicar.

"You're right but the one's inside don't look too difficult. Stay here and protect Xi Chan in case anything else comes along."

She grudgingly agreed to this and the two of them remained crouched behind a low wall as I approached careful to stay out of view of the windows. I crept up to the front door weapon in hand, preparing to ambush them. This was slightly spoiled when they came rushing out of the building towards me. Slightly awkward but they seemed just as surprised to see me as I was them. I caught the first man off guard with a shotgun blast that flung him backwards into the second. The third trooper managed to get round them as they collapsed but took the second shot and went down. The second trooper managed to get back up but instead of attacking he began sprinting away. Leaving him for Lara to pick off I headed inside to seek out any remaining troops before I called the others inside.

I searched each room in turn until near the back of the house I heard a muffled constant beeping noise. It took me three seconds to realize why the soldiers had been running out of the building when I arrived and two seconds after that to smash my way out of the nearest window and start running away. Ten seconds later the bomb went off taking most of the house with it.

The explosion knocked me off my feet and destroyed my shields (no idea what maniac set the charges but I think he overdid it). I was knocked conscious by the blast but I've no idea how long for. When I awoke Cerberus soldiers were standing over me as I lay defenseless. To my right Lara and Xi Chan were surrounded by soldiers and Adjutants and had their hands up. I tried to count the number of dead Adjutants at Lara's feet but lost track at about a dozen.

As I looked round our militia and civilians were being loaded onto vehicles guarded by Cerberus soldiers. I let myself fall back, lying flat against the ground, not wanting to see any more. We had spent what felt like years fighting the Reapers and now thanks to these insane fanatics we had lost. I felt certain that this would cost us the war on Earth. I had no real idea what Cerberus wanted but they were throwing all of our lives away to get it. Most terrifyingly of all (particularly to anyone who has ever seen their experiments) we were now prisoners of Cerberus.


	24. Log 21

Log 21

Date: 8TH NOV 2186

Location: CERBERUS BASE, UNKNOWN

They've taken us to another Cerberus facility. When the generator was destroyed all the kinetic barriers and the main cannons went offline. This left areas filled with civilians vulnerable to attack and Colonel Travis soon surrendered the village to prevent mass casualties. In exchange Cerberus lowered the communication barrier and allowed her to transmit a warning advising the reinforcements to stay away. The resistance would survive to fight another day but with Cerberus able to mass produce Adjutants out of the people they'd capture I worried their fight would be futile.

I learned most of this on the way to this place, wherever it is. After the battle was over large trunks were brought in so that whole groups of us could be herded onto each one like cattle. We were chained down but still able to talk. From the various accounts of my fellow prisoners I was able to piece the story together.

It's hard to tell but I think we headed north after we left what's left of Welcome. No idea how far we've come but we may have crossed the border back into Canada. Well it made a great metaphor for being knocked back to square one at least. We were back where we started geographically. I'd say we're in worse shape strategically than we were but with so much stacked against us already does one more disaster really make a difference?

We couldn't see outside on the journey and by the time we were let out (dragged out) we were in some loading bay inside the Cerberus base. I've no idea where we are or even if this is above or below ground (the lack of windows could mean either). We were forced into a line so that they they could search us one by one before sending us to our cells. The guards doing the searching were efficient, thorough and brutal but not aggressive they acted more like machines. They performed the same actions on each person and I idly wondered if anyone here hadn't received implants. Once they were finished they shoved each person forward in exactly the same way (I saw Xi Chan fall flat on his face having obtained some injuries I didn't recall him having before) and then moved onto the next person.

Eventually after we had all been processed the civilians, the soldiers and most of the officers were marched away. I can only pray they're all in cells now and not in some ghoulish experiment. The few high ranking officers that remained were instead marched off so that we could meet the good doctor himself.

We were taken to a pristine laboratory , brightly lit and with lots of sophisticated equipment around the room. The room was empty but I got the impression the scientists had just been ordered out of the room while we were there. However the calm civility of the area was somewhat spoiled by the tanks. There were about a dozen in total, bolted to the walls and each holding a different horror. A couple held Adjutants but the rest contained various Reaper foot soldiers. As I looked around the collection even I didn't recognize all the different types (there was a tall female looking one in the corner that could've been an Asari once. After taking one look I decided I never wanted to face one in the field). It was almost sad to see them this way. I would have happily destroyed them but took no pleasure seeing Cerberus add to the tortures they'd already faced at the hands of the Reapers.

And standing above it all, looking down on us and everything else was the man himself, Dr. Serov. He was standing on a platform at the far end of the room. From there he could speak to us easily without having to share a space with half a dozen trained soldiers that hated him. Even now he was cautious of us, I briefly looked around for anyway I could get to him but it was hopeless. Even if we all charged we'd be shot dead before we even got close. Maybe it'd be worth it.

"Ah Admiral, General and the Justicar how good of you all to drop by."

The bad jokes weren't exactly my highest priority at that point but somehow my desire to throttle him still increased slightly. None of us really knew how to reply though or could work up the effort to do so. We just stood there in silence until Lara finally spoke.

"Monster! The rest of the Justicar Order will hunt you down. They will never stop until you've been destroyed."

As she spoke I turned to face her. Her face was filled with defiance but I could see a massive bruise across it. From the size and shape you'd have thought someone had whacked her across the face with an iron bar. Maybe they had, come to think of it I couldn't recall seeing a single captured alien not bearing some kind of injury, usually several. I've heard Cerberus say in the past that promoting humanity's interests doesn't mean they hate aliens but right now they were showing their true colours.

Dr Serov laughed.

"Yes I imagine I'm the sort of person your antiquated Order goes after. The Justicar's lack any sort of real vision, the will to do what must be done in order to survive."

"You think the Justicar's lack conviction?" I found myself asking incredulously.

"Oh they're ruthless enough in their own way I'll grant you but their order is based on a Code. A set of rules they will never break under any circumstances."

"That means we have integrity," replied Lara with quiet dignity.

"It means they are WEAK. Stupid aliens who don't realize all rules must be abandoned when it comes to our survival."

"Our survival?" sneered General Coberg. "You've weakened humanities position, attacked your own with an enemy at the gates."

"A necessary step," replied Serov calming now from his earlier rant. "Your pathetic 'resistance' was always a waste of time, I think you always understood that General. My plans have the benefit of actually bringing some hope in this war."

"And what hope would that be?" asked the General.

"My Adjutants," said Serov simply. "A means to convert an entire population into soldiers that can fight the Reapers. That's our enemy's greatest strength. Every member of their race is a soldier, all of them willing to fight to the death to achieve victory. Imagine that if instead of the hundreds or thousands of troops your militia has gathered we could have an army of millions, tens of millions!"

At this point we simply stood there, all of us struck dumb by his insanity. His words echoed in my ears, 'tens of millions', how could he possibly rationalize killing so many just to win?

"When the time is right I will unleash the Adjutant virus across the continent, creating enough soldiers to drive out the Reaper occupation." Serov ranted.

"We will go to London in force, seize all the weapons there and-"

"What's in London?"

We all looked round when Coberg came out with that question, even Serov looked surprised to be interrupted. Of all of us there the General appeared to be least concerned by what he was hearing. It may have been an act so he could try and get more intel but I still felt some of the respect I had gained for the General in the past few days dry up.

"The Reapers have gathered there in force. According to my information they're setting up some kind of anti ship defenses on the ground there. We'll capture them and blast the Reapers out of the sky."

"It won't be enough," said Coberg critically. "Even if these Reaper weapons are all you're hoping for there's no chance you'll be able to defeat the entire fleet."

He's actually considering this I thought with contempt.

"You're probably right," admitted Serov. "I will need you to call in support from the Alliance fleet to capitalize on the attack."

The doctor became stony faced again.

"This you will do no matter what tortures or other procedures I must use to achieve it. Luckily for you that part of the plan is still some way off so I will allow you 48 hours to agree willingly before I start taking more drastic action."

"We'll never help you. Give up on this insane plan and let us go and fight the real enemy."

"We shall see. If it comes to it we're prepared to act alone."

"Then what's stopping you?"

"Oh I can see the General's the better strategist here Admiral. Am I going to launch into some doomsday plan right away? No, I need time to build my armies and infrastructure to prepare a secure base before I make larger moves. A vision as bold as mine need a strong secure foundation from which to operate." he looked at Lara and sneered again.

"I might even look into that idea of turning the Justicar into my own personal guard. I certainly can't think of any other use for them."

At this Lara threw herself at him. I've never seen anyone use biotics that way (her biotic implant had been switched off) but she launched herself up into the air grabbing onto the bottom of the platform and attempting to pull herself up.

The guards raised their guns preparing to shoot her (I tensed up ready to try and knock them down to give Lara a chance) but Serov raised a hand to indicate they should hold fire. The doctor peered down at Lara as she continued to climb up the railing towards him then calmly pressed a few buttons on a nearby console. The effect was immediate, Lara shrieked in pain and was thrown from the metal frame of the platform in a shower of sparks. Clearly the railing had been electrified.

"Is it still alive?" Serov asked casually.

One of the guards bent over her and checked before nodding.

"Take them to their cells then. And remember gentlemen; agree to help my cause in the next 48 hours. Or I will cause you more pain then you've ever endured in your lives."

"I'll think it over," the General called back.

The last thing I remember was trying to hit him.

I woke up in a cell with other prisoners. No idea how long I'd been unconscious. When I tried to attack Coberg in the lab the guards knocked me out and dragged me in here. At first I stayed where I was, slumped in a corner. I slowly remembered everything that had happened before I had been knocked out. That we were captured, Serov's insane plans, the fear that the General would betray us.

I looked around, apparently someone had had the sense not to put us in the same cell. Wouldn't want me killing him before he gave them what they're after. I had a headache again, it felt like being ground down by some massive weight. It feels like there's nothing left in the world except for responsibility and failure. I tried to remember to a time before the Reapers came but I couldn't.

I could remember back to before they arrived on Earth, back to the days of being a Councilor on the Citadel even. But the Reapers were still weighing on my mind even then. Back then they seemed like an inescapable threat and we were just waiting for their arrival. The few of us who knew and believed in them tried to do what we could to prepare or escape. All seems pointless now, the fear, the worry, the sleepless nights, all for nothing.

I can't recall what it felt like to not have that threat hanging over my head. It's like a nightmare that never ends but it happens during the day. Every day I wake up and remember the situation we're in. Every day I look for someway out, something that will let things go back to the way they used to be. Sometimes I think about that so called superweapon they're building and pray its finished soon. Sometimes I think it's a lie invented to help us stay sane.

"Admiral? Are you awake? I need help."

I forced myself to get up and focused on the scene in front of me. The one that had just spoken was a young female, she had bright ginger hair and a nervous expression on her face. I was sure I knew her from somewhere but at first I couldn't remember where. She was still wearing an Alliance uniform, rank of Cadet. Had she served under me at some point before all of this started? That didn't seem right but then I recalled.

"Cadet Sarah isn't it? You were part of Xi Chan's team when we were in Vancouver."

"I was sir. We were all very proud to be serving under you when you arrived at the base," she said.

"Can you help him? I don't know what to do."

I got up and she led me over to a man slumped in the corner. I pulled back the hood to reveal his face, he was the Drell I had met before our raid on the Reaper base. God feels like a lifetime ago not a couple of weeks. Karlakh his name was I think but if I didn't help him he wasn't going to be in a position to confirm that ever again.

Karlakh was in a bad way, the worst I'd seen since I'd arrived in this place. If he wasn't the only Drell in the resistance I wouldn't have recognized him for all his injuries. I'm not sure why they took particular exception to him but his face was covered in bruises, one eye was swollen shut and he had a cut that swept the full length of his face, barely missing his right eye. The worst of it that I could see were the two gunshot wounds in his right arm.

The Cadet had tried to apply a tourniquet but no where near tight enough. She wasn't to blame, just nerves and inexperience I guess. I was still in my armor so I tore off Karlakh's sleeve to use. Tied it round his arm and the bleeding started to slow down.

"Will he be OK?"

"We have to get him out of here."

"Of course sir, what's the plan?"

They were all still looking to me to save them. It should have felt like a burden. We were trapped, probably underground, in a military style prison guarded by an army. By the looks of things many of the prisoners would be injured or worse being turned into Serov's monsters. And I was just one man right now, not really an Admiral (you need a fleet for that) or a Council representative for Earth (I'd resigned thank god) or even a soldier (even soldiers get weapons). I was just a man and all the things I'd seen and done, all my experience didn't change the fact I was locked in a cell (somehow I doubted Cerberus would fall for any crude tricks. If I faked dying they'd probably just leave me to it).

But I felt privileged not burdened. I wasn't just a man but a leader, I had people to protect. Even when I gave up hope I wasn't allowed to give up on them. It's odd but there is strength to be found in fighting for a hopeless cause. The difficulty, the danger they don't matter any more because now nothing will stop you. If the task in front of you looks unachievable, so what? That's what you expected from the start.

"Sir?"

"Serov wants something from me, it might be possible to use that to our advantage. Sooner or later he's going to let me out of here again, either for interrogation or torture. We have to be patient until then."

"Patient!"

I looked up and saw Karlakh had woken up.

"Do I have enough time to be patient, Admiral?"

"Rest easy there son. There's no way out of this cell and I doubt banging on the door and saying we have injured is going to make Cerberus come running."

"I guess not," he coughed. "How long do you think they'll keep us waiting for?"

"I'm not sure," I admitted. "I hope its not too long."

"Thank you for your help anyway Admiral," Karlakh replied.

We sat in silence for awhile, waiting and hoping that the door would open again.

I think we were there for an hour before anyone came for us. At one point I did agree to start banging on the door to see if any Cerberus troops would come running. None did, either they weren't out there or they didn't care. There really was no way to break out of the cell either. We were in a metal box with no openings of any kind save the ventilation ducts running along the top of the front wall. If this were a film they'd be one duct big enough to crawl through, each of these was barely bigger than my fist.

So I did something I haven't done since the First Contact War, I prayed. Last time it was in the trenches on Shanxi, now in a Cerberus cell. Once again I was back in that situation, just a man asking anyone who might be listening for a chance to act before it was too late. Before Karlakh bled out, before the people I'd promised to protect were turned into Serov's pets. I don't know what luck keeps helping me stay alive after all these years but it answered my prayers that day. A few minutes later the door did open, a Cerberus soldier demanding I step out.

I got to my feet.

"My friend needs Medi gel, you must have some here."

The guard simply ignored this and repeated his demand word for word. Just another one of Serov's slaves then, with a computer for a brain but it gave me an idea.

"If Serov wants my help then you have to help my friend."

The trooper paused for a moment considering my request before nodding. It wouldn't have worked on a real soldier, they'd have just laughed or sneered at my request. But its computer brain calculated decisions rather differently. A useful thing to remember I thought. They've made their soldiers more obedient but also stripped them of cruelty, they make their decisions based on pure logic now. The gel was applied, the biological substance sealing the wound perfectly and easing the pain. With any luck he would be fine now after a few more hours rest. Now I just needed to find a way to get us all out of here.

I was marched back to the lab where I first met Serov. He was still there, along with the general who was now unguarded I noticed and several Cerberus troops that took up positions to guard me.

"Ah Admiral, it seems your friend has done the sensible thing and agreed to help us. I would have you executed now but it would be more convincing to have both of you calling the Alliance."

Said Serov with his usual level of smug arrogance.

"I'd rather die than serve Cerberus."

I looked for a way to get at the General, he wasn't far away and killing him before he could trick the Alliance seemed to be my first priority.

"As you wish, kill him now,"

Ah I hadn't quite counted on that. Before I could react I was knocked to my knees, a gun pressed against my head.

"Wait!" called General Coberg. "We should delay his execution until we're confident the Alliance has fallen for my story."

"Are you sure it isn't loyalty General?" Serov asked. "If this has been some kind of trick-"

"I agreed to help you because up until now I believed you had what it takes to put strategic concerns ahead of petty emotion. Was I wrong in that assessment Doctor?"

Serov considered this for a moment.

"Tiresome as the man is swiftly becoming I see your point General. Let's get on with this so I can be rid of him."

"Of course sir, I'll need you to lower the communications barrier so I can contact the Alliance fleet using their secure frequencies."

"Understood but stick to the script when you speak to the Alliance General, I warn you I am not a man to be crossed."

"Of course Doctor, I'll stay right here and allow you to monitor the entire conversation."

I was about to make a charge on the General, determined to break his neck before he could betray the fleet. Then he looked straight at me and then back towards the tanks storing the Reaper creatures. He repeated the gesture twice before turning his attention back to the task at hand. It took me several seconds to understand what he was suggesting and once I understood several minutes to get over my disbelief. But he was right, we were facing hell regardless now, all we could do now is chose which kind.

"Communication barrier down, you may begin when ready."

The General began tapping away at the console in front of him and then gave a loud shout and began clutching his chest, yelling about a heart attack. A touch too theatrical for my taste but it gave my guards a moments distraction and that was all I needed. I grabbed the gun pointed at me and turned it aside while swiftly rising to my he could react I drove a knee into his gut causing him to double up in pain. This left his head as a perfect target when I swung round with a vicious elbow strike. He dropped the gun and fell unconscious but I had no time to congratulate myself. The elbow strike had spun me round and I saw the second guard raising his pistol to shoot. I managed to knock his arm away with my right arm, and with my left still clutching the captured gun I scored a direct headshot at close range.

Turning away from the carnage I raced towards the tank the General had indicated. I tore off my helmet and threw it aside and finally looked directly into the tank, face to face with the Marauder inside. I've no idea what kind of hellish experiments Serov had been keeping it for but it was about to backfire badly. The creature was restrained so it could not writhe in pain as it usually would but I saw the spark of those glowing amber eyes ignite. Two Cerberus soldiers knocked me to the ground but it didn't matter as those words echoed around the room. Words that usually brought me dread but now for the first time gave me hope.

"Assuming direct control."


	25. Log 22

Log 22

Date: 9TH NOV 2186

Location: UNKNOWN

"Why do you write that thing?"

I looked up from the datapad, I'd been working on. The General was sat opposite me in our new cell.

"I like to think of it as a record of what happened here. A guide for the next cycle."

"Next cycle? I never really understood that stuff to be honest with you."

"The Reapers harvest civilizations. Every cycle they hide in dark space, out beyond the edge of our galaxy. One stays behind to monitor the next civilization to spring up. When it decides we're 'ready' it signals the fleet to attack again. "

"Then how long has it been going on for?"

"It's impossible to know for certain. As much as possible they try to leave no trace for the next cycle to find. Millions of years at least."

The General's face was grave.

"Then how can we win? If the Reapers have won hundreds, thousands of times before what chance do we stand?"

"It doesn't matter, it's our duty to keep fighting,"

"For how long? Anderson we can't keep this up forever. I see the same reports you get from Alliance command, we're being slaughtered!"

I hesitated but decided I had to give him something.

"The Alliance is working on something to turn the tide, top secret."

"Like a weapon?"

He wasn't getting anything more out of me.

"I'm sorry I can't say any more, it's classified at the highest level."

The General looked at me strangely for a moment but then shrugged it off.

"How the hell's that book of yours gunna survive 'till the next cycle anyway?"

I shrugged.

"I've been burying copies at every location we've been in vacuum sealed time capsules. Some of our contacts in the global resistance have agreed to do the same. Maybe it'll be low tech enough that the Reapers won't notice it."

"Seems like a long shot to me."

"When it comes to communication from one cycle to the next I'm guessing it's always a long shot."

"Y'know you really had me fooled for awhile there," I commented casually.

"'Course I did. I'm sure you thought I'd turn traitor at the first opportunity."

"I'm sorry, I-"

"Look, I did what needed to be done. I won't apologize for getting the job done. You might not like my attitude but it's kept me alive this long. Me and my men."

"Not in Vancouver," I reminded him gently.

"What do you want me to say Admiral? I screwed up in Vancouver, I know I did. What difference does it make admitting to it now? Everything's gone to shit in any case."

"I'm not trying to score points. I needed to know that you'd accepted your mistakes so that we could move forward. And I wanted to thank you as well. It hasn't escaped my notice that we wouldn't stand a chance right now if it wasn't for you. I do appreciate your help General."

He nodded but otherwise didn't acknowledge my comment so we sat in silence for awhile until an explosion sounded in the distance, the third we'd heard since we'd be thrown into the cell.

"Looks like the Reapers and Cerberus are keeping each other occupied," remarked Coberg casually.

I nodded slowly.

"How long 'till they decide to let us out d'you think?"

After I'd alerted Harbinger to the location of the Cerberus base Dr. Serov had initially wanted to kill us outright. It was the General who pointed out that to have the best chance of surviving this he might yet need the help of the resistance. Serov really wanted to execute us but eventually agreed we might be of use. Certainly he wanted to keep me alive in case he needed to trade me to Harbinger (always nice to feel wanted).

"An hour maybe? I've a feeling Serov will be pretty stubborn about it."

Another explosion sounded, shaking the room slightly this time, louder than the last one had been.

"Possibly less than an hour,"

By this point we were fairly confident the facility was underground, out of range of the Reaper weapons (of course if this assumption was wrong the first and last thing I'd know about it would be a sudden bright light).

We sat in silence for awhile, wrapped up in our own thoughts. We had stopped Dr. Serov (even if he survived the attack his abominations were about to be destroyed, along with his plans) but I expected to die soon. Would Cerberus let us out to fight against Harbinger? Or would they abandon us here to the Reapers to give themselves more time to flee. Either possibility seemed hopeless. I turned my thoughts to Kahlee and my son Jason. If the worst should happen I wanted to go the way Jeff did, my last thoughts being of loved ones.

I wished I hadn't wasted so much time with both of them. Too busy off on assignment to attend my own son's graduation, letting my duty get in the way of me and Kahlee. Years and years wasted, trying to protect them from what was out there. Every meeting, every lead I chased down, every preparation I made for the Reaper invasion I always thought I was protecting them.

And then the invasion arrives, every mission I go on could easily get me killed but I barely ever contact them. And even when I do I leave far too much unsaid. Well I could fix that one thing, do something right for a change. I picked up the datapad again and wrote something for them. I want it recorded here that if I don't make it and this journal is found, that entry is for them and only for them.

I'd barely finished when the door opened, I think it had been about quarter of an hour since I spoke with the General.

"You need to come quickly before any of Serov's guard come along."

It was a Cerberus technician standing at the door.

"I'm guessing Serov doesn't need to know that you're letting us out?"

"You said you could help get us out of this, was it true?"

Saving Cerberus operatives wasn't exactly at the top of my priority list at that point but it seemed sensible to keep this man on side for the time being.

"I'll try," I promised vaguely, not wanting to commit myself (the memory of the corpses we found at the last Cerberus base were still fresh in my mind).

"What's the current situation?"

"I- I'm not really sure. I'm sorry it's all been in chaos, the leadership isn't-"

"Start from the beginning. What happened?" Asked Coberg.

"About forty minutes ago two Reaper capital ships, three destroyers and a troop transport ship arrived at our main entrance."

"Two capital ships? They really want you badly, don't they?" Coberg remarked to me.

"I assume one of them is Harbinger?" I asked.

"Harbinger? No, no he's still in London though we have seen one of his controlled slaves here."

"London? What's going on over there?"

"No one really knows for sure, just that a lot of Reapers have gathered there and started heavily fortifying it."

"Any idea if-"

I was interrupted by another blast that shook the entire base.

"I assume this facility of yours is deep enough underground that the Reapers can't hit us?"

"Yes sir,upon arrival the Reapers began deploying ground troops which immediately laid siege to the main entrance. Serov's response was to order the deployment of several Adjutants to slow the Reaper advance so that we could make our escape."

"Leaving the rest of us trapped in our cells as a gift to the Reapers," grunted the General.

"Lovely. I presume something went wrong or you wouldn't be asking for our help."

"Ah- as it turned out there was a slight glitch with the command interface."

"What the hell does that mean?"

"It means they couldn't control the Adjutants," I said and then laughed bitterly when I realized what had gone wrong. It wasn't all that surprising really, Cerberus is known for meddling with technology they don't fully (or even slightly) understand.

"They immediately defected, didn't they?"

"Uh - Yes."

"Serov tried to create a new sort of Reaper soldier that would obey him. Guess he got it half right."

"With the Adjutants help they quickly overran the first couple of levels. Last I heard we were still holding them at bay but I'm not sure how long we'll be able to hold out."

"Are we in immediate danger here?"

"No they've a long way to go yet. The complex is actually massive,it was our main headquarters for Earth operations."

"How did Serov plan on getting out?" asked Coberg.

"There's a second exit that leads to part of the old subway tunnels. We can get quite a distance away underground if we're lucky. The Reapers have patrols down there but we don't think they're aware that the tunnels connect to this base."

"Then what's stopping him from just leaving? Or you?"

"Uh to get to that exit you have to go through Cold Storage Room 1."

"And what's in Cold Storage 1?" I asked, already having a sinking feeling that I knew the answer.

"That's where the Adjutants are kept, I mean the ones not currently being used in combat."

"How many?"

"Uh- well about five hundred in total."

Next thing I remember he was up against the wall with my hand around his throat.

"Five hundred people, you-"

I honestly couldn't find the words, I could have ripped his throat out I was so angry. Fortunately the General was on hand.

"We might need him alive Admiral."

"He killed-"

"I doubt he was personally responsible. We have to stay focused on getting out of here."

I dropped the man who slumped to the ground, gasping for breath.

"You're right, thank you."

"For what? Let's just get on with it, we need to find another way out of here."

I shook my head disagreeing.

"We have to destroy those Adjutants," I explained.

"To hell with them. Cerberus is finished and the Adjutants are just strange freaks of nature, irrelevant to us. Just let them all kill each other."

"The Adjutants don't need Cerberus to create more of themselves. Once the Reapers let them off their leach they'll swarm across the country. Infecting innocent people by the thousands, creating even more monsters for us to deal with."

Coberg swore softly.

"There's five hundred of them and we needed an air strike to handle twenty or thirty last time. How the hell are we gonna do this?"

I paused thinking about the problem for awhile then turned to the Cerberus technician (who had by this point just about recovered).

"Serov must have had a fail-safe in case something went wrong with the Adjutants."

He nodded wearily.

"He claimed there was, some sort of micro-explosive implant in each Adjutant I think. But Serov and his elite guard have locked themselves in his private quarters on level six."

"Have the Reapers reached that far yet?"

"I'm not sure, last time I heard anything their advance scouts were still bogged down on level five."

I sighed tiredly.

"Given the strength of the Reaper forces we have to assume it's a possibility then. Go and release the rest of my people and bring Lara, Daniels, Coats and Xi Chan here."

"I have to escort the Asari and Salarian here?" his lip curled at the thought.

"Only if you want to live," Coberg explained calmly.

"Have the rest brought to a secure area near the Cold Storage Room. And bring all of them, if anyone gets left behind I'll shoot you."

"And fetch our gear too," called Coberg.

We were assembled within fifteen minutes but even in that short time we'd already started hearing gunfire on the levels above. I'd just about had time to put Colonel Travis in charge of keeping the rest of the resistance and the civilians safe.

"So all we have to do is break into the most secure part of the base, beat Serov's personal guard and somehow force him to tell us how to activate the failsafe. All while avoiding Reaper troops that may or may not have reached that area already. Did I miss anything?" Asked Coats.

"And escape," mentioned Lara.

"Ah, knew I'd forgotten something. Good thing I don't make the plans."

"We need to focus people," I said, doing my best to hide a smile.

"Our friend here has told us about a backdoor entrance to the private quarters. Supposedly it's less well protected because by the time the enemy reached that point the base would have already fallen."

"But let's not take any chances," pointed out the General.

We headed along the corridor cautiously but in the end it hardly mattered. As soon as we got close the door swung open revealing Dr. Serov and about a dozen armed guards. Thinking back if we'd opened fire immediately it would have gone very badly for us. There was no cover at all in the corridor and the guards had full view of every one of us. Dr. Serov laughed as we appeared though it was devoid of all humor now.

"How nice of you to join us again Admiral."

He was a mess, that was my first thought when looking at him. Not just the wounds though he seemed to have taken several (you could see the gray metal of his implants sticking out of a couple of them) or his torn, ragged clothes and ruined haircut. No the worst was his eyes, wild, wide-eyed and staring, somehow oddly matching the strange grin that now seemed permanently fixed on his face. There was something chilling about that fixed grin, the way his eyes bored into you.

'He's broken,' I thought. 'Something in him has snapped.'

His insanity made a strange contrast to his civilized surroundings. We'd seen the doctor liked to be lavish with his labs but it was nothing compared to his own living space. His guards lived in cramped barracks no doubt and yet I could have mistaken his quarters for the interior of a mansion. But the benign setting did little to detract from the tension of that moment.

"I knew you were coming of course. People never think properly. Why leave a weakness in an impregnable fortress?" He laughed again.

"If you give the enemies and traitors hope of getting at you, hope of destroying the monster, they'll run into the fire. And they'll burn in their recklessness."

His speech was soft and mocking at every syllable, the whole thing a joke to him now.

"And now, I think I'll rob Harbinger of the pleasure. Kill-"

I'm not sure I can accurately record what happened next, it all happened so fast but the short version is: everything went mad. With a massive roar the main doors off to the side were ripped off their hinges and flung into the room. Behind them the massive bulk of a Brute charged inside. And following it in flooded Cannibals and Marauders firing wildly. The Cerberus guards quickly scrambled to respond their implant enhanced reflexes helping them escape the initial onslaught. We desperately charged forward into the room seeking any cover we could find (sofas, tables, bookcases anything available really). Once we finally had a safe (ish) position we turned our thoughts to fighting. For a moment nothing could be seen but the hailstorm of fire directed at the Brute from all directions by Resistance and Cerberus.

Our impromptu alliance disintegrated as swiftly as it had formed (as soon as we'd brought down the creature that could have ripped us all apart in fact). What broke out instead was a three way battle between Cerberus, Reaper troops and the Resistance. The Cerberus squad were a blur of motion as they struggled to avoid the incoming fire. The Reapers outnumbered the rest of us and were throwing themselves at us in an attempt to win through sheer weight of numbers. At the back I saw a Marauder writhing in pain and knew another one of Harbinger's puppets would be on us before long. As for ourselves, we held our own, our experience (and Lara's firepower) holding the invaders at bay.

As accelerated shot flew in all directions, I spotted Serov in the corner taking potshots at the room. One shot missed Daniel's head by an inch wiping any rational thought from my mind. I opened fire on Serov, chasing him down with gunfire his speed barely keeping him ahead until he dived for cover behind the sofa. I charged forward determined to reach him and collided directly with a Husk that was charging into battle. We fell, smashing the glass coffee table and it landed on top of me. We struggled briefly before I drove my omniblade into its chest and threw it aside to reveal a Cerberus guard aiming down at me. A blast from Lara caused him to stumble backwards and I managed to roll over to my rifle and finish him off with a quick burst.

I tried to drive over the sofa and grab Serov but something grabbed my foot and dragged me down. I looked back to see the glowing amber eyes of Harbinger's puppet staring back at me. As I planted a foot into the creature's face in order to break free of its grip I spotted Serov making a run for it through a side door. Getting up I switched to my shotgun (I'd dropped my rifle again and it was now lost in the chaos) and charged towards the door. A Cerberus soldier jumped in front of me, blocking my path. He was incredibly fast, avoiding my first two shots easily but the third caught him a glancing blow making him an easy target for the forth. Finally free I barreled through the door and saw just what I'd being hoping for, a computer console that might possibly control the fail-safe. Unfortunately Serov had been lying in wait on the other side.

He grabbed me and forced my gun downwards sending my next shot wild. I kneed him in the gut and rolled away before twisting round to aim my gun at him. We stood there aiming at one another at an impasse for the time being.

"Serov!" I shouted at him, he seemed well beyond reason but I had to try and reach him now. Activating the fail-safe without his help might well prove impossible.

"You have to activate the Adjutant fail-safe, it's the only way."

"You're going to die Admiral. No matter what happens here today we both know this war is going to kill you. My one remaining wish is to see it happen."

Well so much for diplomacy then. Attempting to catch him off guard I took a shot at him (aiming to wound not kill). My gun clicked uselessly like a child's toy, I was out of ammo. Unable to help himself Serov cackled loudly, savoring his victory before finally preparing to fire.

"Seems I get my wish afterall," he remarked.

Before he could fire however Harbinger charged into the room and flung him against the nearest wall.

"Anderson has valuable information, he must not be harmed."

It almost sounded as if Harbinger was giving Serov an order. Later on I speculated that Harbinger thought the doctor was indoctrinated (perhaps he even partially was). Regardless in his current mental state Serov was totally unpredictable.

"I do not take orders from you!" he screeched before throwing himself at us. And thus began one of the toughest, oddest fights of my long career. We each fought the others with everything we had. But Harbinger would not allow Serov to kill me for fear of losing the intel it had come for and I would not allow Harbinger to kill Serov in case we needed him to active the fail-safe. For his part the good doctor (who had a speed advantage over both of us) seemed unable to decide which of us he most wanted to kill. And so it went on with each of us gaining the upper hand sometimes only for scant seconds before losing it again (at one point I actually had to threaten to shoot myself to draw Harbinger away from Serov).

It only finally ended when Harbinger (whose puppet was now suffering from several serious wounds) faked death in order to gain the upper hand. Serov had me back up against a wall (I didn't want him getting round me with his speed) when Harbinger stepped up behind him and hit him on the head so hard I was surprised it didn't split his skull open. The doctor slumped to the ground and Harbinger stepped forward determined to capture me this time. A hope that was somewhat foiled as Lara blasted him so hard he cracked the wall (and probably most of his bones) as he hit it.

I looked up to see the rest of the resistance squad had managed to fight their way here, despite taking a few injuries along the way. Daniels and Coats covered the door with sprays of assault rifle fire to keep the enemy at bay.

"What's the situation?" I asked.

"Most of the Cerberus fighters are dead or fallen back. Think they may have more reinforcements fighting just outside the house but can't tell for sure. Either way I don't think they're winning, the Reapers just keep coming," as if to prove his point Coberg turned and fired towards the door, bringing down a wounded Adjutant.

"And that was the last of my ammo, how's things with you?"

I tossed my shotgun to him (luckily I had reloaded by this stage).

"I think the failsafe will be on that console but we may need Serov's help to activate it."

Coberg caught the shotgun and fired a couple of shots at the door.

"Ah Christmas comes early this year,"

"I'll take a look at the console Admiral," promised Xi Chan.

While he was working on that I went to check on Dr. Serov. To my astonishment he was already conscious although he wasn't going to be a threat for quite awhile.

"I've located the failsafe Admiral, it's protected by a biometeric scanner-"

"That's easy, we have Serov right here,"

"And an eighteen digit security code Admiral."

"Damn. Is there any way to bypass it?"

"Why bother? Just force Serov to tell us what it is," said Coberg.

I looked down at the doctor's unfocused eyes and dazed expression.

"He's in no fit state to tell us anything right now,"

"I may have found a way, Admiral. The system seems to have a flaw whereby it takes slightly longer to reject my guesses when I start getting digits right. A schoolboy error really, Cerberus should invest in better technicians. "

"So you can crack the code?" I asked, hoping for a clearer translation.

"It should be possible yes, it may take some time,"

"How much?" Asked Coberg.

"I'm afraid I can not be exact, the system is crude and slow."

"Hopeless, we should beat the information out of him,"

"Oh the brute rears his ugly head again, do you have any approach that doesn't involve hitting people?"

This last one was Lara but before long an argument was breaking out between everyone. It was the fear and stress of being trapped and surrounded by enemies that was driving it but it left me wondering how I ever thought this could be a team.

"Oh spare me another lecture on your almighty Code, I don't know if you noticed but the rest of us aren't prepared to die over it!"

"Watch where you're shooting Daniels! You almost hit me that time,"

"It's not about the code you stupid man. Serov is a monster but beating him up now won't gain us anything."

"Maybe a little gratitude next time for saving you from that Husk. You'd think by the time you got to 'Major' you'd be able to hold your own."

And on and on it went, the fighters yelling at each other, Xi Chan muttering to himself as he worked at the console. And me trying to wake up Serov with my headache growing ever worse. I could almost hear it, like a high pitched whine over their bickering voices. It was dragging me down, making me want to give up and just let them kill each other. Luckily I managed to throw off the feeling long enough to start shouting.

As a general rule any military officer has a good shouting voice for the parade grounds and making oneself heard in a battle, personally I consider mine one of the best.

"Stop it all of you. We are not going to resort to torture and that's final! Bastard couldn't even tell us his name right now in any case. Focus on keeping the enemy out of here or we will all die horribly. And Daniels if I ever hear you speak that way about a superior officer again, I'll leave you begging to hear the words 'court martial'. Do I make myself clear?"

That worked, for the most part at least. They returned their focus to fighting the enemy. I wasn't sure how long it would last but thankfully Xi came though for us as always.

"Done, the password has been 'hacked'. Place his hand on the screen Admiral and we'll be done."

I dragged Serov to his feet, he was becoming more alert now but he wasn't resisting yet as I led him over to the console.

"We still need a way out of here. Lara, Coberg make us a door," I called out as I pressed Serov's hand against the panel. On the screen a display flashed up: Activate Emergency Adjutant Failsafe Program? Y/N. I hit yes and the screen confirmed activation, there was a small explosion behind me.

"Anything happen back there?"

"Yeah, couple of Adjutants just had their heads blown off," Coats called back.

"Sounds promising," I muttered.

Meanwhile the others had not been idle. Coberg had gathered up the grenades we had left and thrown them against the wall. Lara created a Biotic barrier to hold them in place. With the barrier on one side the force of the explosion had nowhere to go except the wall which was blown to pieces. They headed through followed quickly by Xi Chan. I called to the others and they started backing away from the door, maintaining suppressing fire to keep the enemy at bay. I drew my pistol (only weapon I had left) and took down a few Husks so that they could get away.

As they ran behind me and through the hole we'd made Serov charged at me again. He was still weakened and slower than before, we tangled briefly but I was able to push him away straight into the path of a oncoming Husk. The creature grabbed him and started tearing at him as I backed away towards the exit. Behind him I spotted another Marauder being turned into Harbinger's puppet. I stopped at the mouth of the exit, hesitating for a moment. Not fully understanding why, I raised my gun and shot down the Husks surrounding Serov and tossed him my gun. He caught it and with a snarl tried to shoot me but I was already gone, racing down the corridor.

Still not sure why I did that, it was a spur of the moment thing I guess. Maybe I wanted to give Serov a chance or maybe part of me thought it was fitting to force Serov to keep fighting a hopeless battle. I've no idea what became of him after that. We escaped the base, some of those we'd arrived with still missing (probably converted) but with other escapees we'd never met also joining us. Not to mention more than a few Cerberus employees, not sure how I feel about that one but I guess not everyone in the organization will have been evil.

* * *

 **Author's Note: When I was reaching this point I realized I wanted to write what Mass Effect fans have been waiting for (in my opinion), a three way battle between the Alliance, Cerberus and the Reapers. Hope you enjoyed it and please review!**


	26. Hard Choices

Hard Choices

 _Shepard's hearing dragged on just as I had predicted. I'd arranged to be stationed on Earth so I'd be able to attend each session but I'd missed more of them than I'd intended. Each one was the same really, the Admirals presided over the proceeding but it was the politicians that picked apart every word._

 _It turned out that whoever was behind the idea of using this situation to attack Shepard's reputation (Udina has repeatedly denied that it's him and I think I believe it) was smart not to make it a trial. As a Spectre the Commander is officially above the law so long as he never truly crossed the line. In a criminal trial many of his actions would be automatically dismissed as legal without examination. In the hearing however, any action could be fully exposed and considered with the justifications so often left out of the stories occasionally leaked to the media._

 _Whoever set this up had intended to draw this out as long as possible, it would take something beyond a miracle to exonerate Shepard or get him back into active duty where he belonged. Trying to chase down the culprits however was like trying to pin down fog. It wasn't that I had no suspects but that I had endless suspects that frustrated me. Shepard had become and easy target and attacking his reputation publicly became an easy way to advance your political career._

 _Eventually, as I always knew I would, I found myself sitting once again in the viewing stands as the hearing now entered its final phase. The incident at Aratoht, one final topic on the agenda for the trial and the one I had been most dreading since the trial began._

 _In truth the reason I feared it so much because it caused a crisis of faith even for me. For the first time I questioned if I had been right to trust the Commander quite so blindly. I soon reminded myself of all that I had personally seen of the Reapers and eased my doubts about them considerably. I spoke with Shepard on this topic often and at some length before the hearing began. I did and still do understand and accept his reasons but I'm not certain that I would have, could have made the same decision in his place. That time the stakes might have been too high even for me._

 _Once more Shepard was lead into the court room while Hackett read out the formalities for what would be the final time. For the first time in these proceedings the Commander seemed unsure of himself, the pain and guilt visible on his face. But as he approached the stand he steeled himself for what was to come, his confidence and determination returning to him like old friends he could draw comfort from._

 _"Commander Shepard," called out Hackett. "We have reconvened this hearing to discuss the events that lead to the destruction of the Bahak System and the deaths of over 300,000 Batarians. It should be noted now that everything said in this meeting will be classified at the highest level and anyone found discussing it outside of this room will be prosecuted from treason. Commander in your own words please give us your mission report."_

 _"Yes sir. I had received information that a human Alliance operative was being held in a Batarian prison on Aratoht, the second planet of the Bahak System. According to my source I believed she might have intel regarding the imminent return of the Reapers."_

 _"And who exactly was this source?" Asked Admiral Singh._

 _"Commander Shepard and I have already discussed that in a closed session Admiral. To preserve the sources identity they will not be mentioned today. Please continue Commander."_

 _"Using the Normandy's stealth systems I was able to bypass the Batarian defenses and reach the surface. From there I rescued the prisoner, Dr. Kenson and we escaped in a shuttlecraft."_

 _"Then wasn't this mission, an unsanctioned mission into foreign territory I might add complete at this stage? I'm unclear as to how this lead to the destruction of the system," Singh pointed out._

 _"After I had rescued Dr. Kenson she took me to an asteroid where she and her team had set up a base of operations before she'd been captured. Once we were there she explained that they had discovered what was unquestionably a Reaper artifact."_

 _"Can you describe this artifact?"_

 _"The scientists referred to it as Object Rho. It was discovered at the center of the asteroid they were using as a base broadcasting a repeating pulse of high energy signals. The scientists weren't able to learn much about it as it protects itself by generating a quantum stasis field just like the Mass Relays."_

 _"Mhmm an interesting object for study assuming it ever existed. I assume however that it was destroyed with the rest of the Bahak System. Nevertheless you haven't explained why Dr. Kenson thought it signified the return of these so called 'Reapers'."_

 _"Dr. Kenson and her team determined that the artifact was reacting to an external source, the Reapers. She realized that the increasing frequency of the pulses was a response to the approaching Reaper fleet. Aware that the Reapers would arrive within days she and her team devised a desperate plan to buy us more time."_

 _"And what was this plan exactly?"_

 _"She had determined that the only way to slow them down would be to stop them from using the Mass Relay in the system. This became critical when she discovered that this particular Relay, which she dubbed the 'Alpha' Relay was the oldest and most powerful. It was capable of transporting ships to over a dozen other Relays across the galaxy, including the Citadel. The Reapers could have used it to spread their invasion force throughout Citadel space within hours. So she saw no other alternative than to destroy it."_

 _A ripple of shock worked its way across the room. Relays weren't just considered to be indestructible but also the very foundation of our way of life. Without them our interstellar travel would be limited to just a handful of systems in our own backyard. To most people the idea of destroying one was, unthinkable._

 _"How exactly were they intending to destroy a Relay?"_

 _"Their plan was fairly straightforward. Acquire thrusters and engine parts on Omega and use them to construct a way to move the entire asteroid. They intended to drive it straight into the Relay."_

 _"Did they even stop to consider the consequences?" Asked Admiral Singh._

 _"They seemed to be very clear on what would happen. Their prediction was that when the mass effect generator ruptured it would release enough to destroy the entire system. But based on their information they saw it as the only option."_

 _"And you were able to verify that this information was accurate Commander?"_

 _"In a manner of speaking Admiral. I was able to confirm it was a Reaper artifact when it become obvious that everyone on the base been been indoctrinated by it. They turned on me almost as soon as I arrived and kept me sedated for two days."_

 _"But if you were unconscious and they were indoctrinated as thus effectively working for the Reapers-"_

 _"How did the Project get activated?" Shepard finished the question for the Admiral. There was a long drawn out silence before the Commander could bring himself to raise his head again and look the Admiral in the eye._

 _"It was me. I did it, I killed them."_

 _"How did-" the Admiral began saying but Shepard was already cutting across her._

 _"I woke up unexpectedly, took them by surprise. I don't think they understood what I was capable of ever since Cerberus brought me back. My implants helped me shake off the sedative and I had control of their med bay before they knew what was happening."_

 _He paused briefly to collect his thoughts but no one was looking to interrupt him now. I'd never heard Shepard talk about how his resurrection had changed him before, usually he insisted he was the same as ever. But despite his silence I'd known it still haunted him, not least because he had little or no idea what Cerberus actually did to him. Looking into his eyes now I think he was afraid they'd turned him into a monster._

 _"When they knew they couldn't contain me they decided to throw everything they had into killing me. And not just the guards, but the engineers and the scientists and all the other civilians in the facility. And there was no other way of stopping them I had to kill them, all of them, before time ran out. I activated the project and then I tried to warn the colony but Dr. Kenson and her team were trying to-"_

 _"were trying to sab-"_

 _"I didn't have-, there wasn't enough time."_

 _Shepard stopped speaking, his fingers clenched around the edge of the podium, the flesh as pale as death. Head bent hiding his face it was several minutes before he spoke again._

 _"I'm sorry, I can't. I need to take a minute."_

 _He rushed outside, not waiting for permission, not acknowledging or even looking at anyone as he abruptly left. I couldn't catch his eye as he went but I saw the pain and grief on his face clearly enough. It was at least ten minutes before the Commander was able to continue with the session. He finished his statement in a dull monotone, sticking closely to the facts and ending as quickly as possible. He explained how Dr. Kenson and her team had tried to sabotage the Project, by trying to detonate the reactor core used to power the asteroid. He explained that by the time he'd managed to deal with this less than ten minutes remained. Enough time to signal the Normandy for extraction, but the colony wasn't so lucky._

 _Finally the time had come for the Admirals to 'make their recommendation'. In truth, this is when Shepard would be sentenced._

 _"After hearing all of the evidence presented at this hearing and consulting among ourselves this panel has come up with the following recommendations. Firstly that Commander Shepard, be stripped of all rank and title. Secondly that Mr John Shepard be discharged from military service with the Alliance and forbidden from re-enlisting. Thirdly that he be placed under house arrest for the next five years, at which point we will reassess the situation. This hearing is now adjourned."_

 _With that final declaration Admiral Hackett stood up and walked out of the room, making little attempt to disguise his disgust out the verdict he'd just read out. As for myself, I remained seated in the courtroom while the rest filed out and for quite some time after. It seemed Shepard's exploits had taken him out of play at least until things got so bad as to make the rule of law fall silent. I briefly wondered what I would have done faced with the same choice never realizing my choices would one day determine the fate of the planet... And the galaxy._


	27. Log 23

Log 23

Date: 10TH NOV 2186

Location: VANCOUVER, CANADA

We made it out of there without any more major issues. The Reapers and Cerberus were too busy fighting each other to notice our escape. As we passed through what they called 'Cold Storage Room 1' it was clear the fail-safe had been completely successful. The room had been turned into a strange sort of impromptu habitat for the Adjutants to live in. They had been allowed to roam free in this large cavern. Now it was littered with their corpses.

I felt a strange revolution as we marched through. If they had lived they would have been an unstoppable plague, turning everyone they met into more of themselves. But several of them were members of the resistance before being turned and all of them had been people once. I wondered briefly how Shepard had felt that day when he'd sacrificed 300,000 lives to buy the galaxy more time. Like the Adjutants they'd been dead already, none of them would have survived the Reaper's arrival. But to be the one that actually had to bring about so many deaths, I can't find the words to describe it. Maybe that's why I decided to stay here on Earth, to avoid facing decisions like that.

After we got through that room we were out of the base and into the subway tunnels. Our new Cerberus friend warned us that we would would need to reach the surface quickly, the Reapers often patrolled the tunnels. We were led down a tunnel we were told would take us away from the city where we might be safer. When I finally asked which city I was taken back by the answer.

"Vancouver?"

The others were just as astonished, I'm not sure there was any other city in North America that would have surprised us as much.

"How did you survive when the rest of the city fell?"

The technician shrugged.

"Our base is deep underground and the tunnels let us come and go discretely. We never knew much of what was going on above 'cept what we were told. Heard a rumor 'bout a bit of a battle in the east side of the city once but nothing came of it."

"All the time we spent running around fighting the Reapers, hunting Cerberus and you were right under our feet!"

"I guess so. But we really need to hurry, the sooner we're out of the tunnels the better."

We pushed on while in the privacy of my own head I tried to come to terms with it. We were right back where we started. My war with the Reapers had come round in a pointless circle. Oh it was true that I had saved people along the way and built up a resistance to try and slow the occupation. But I had lost a lot of people along the way. Not to mention I had no idea if most of the resistance was still standing at this point (we had only been out of contact for a few days but when you're up against Reapers that's the equivalent of months fighting).

We'd done a headcount as we escaped the base and a lot of people are missing. In the madness of the battle for Welcome and the isolation of capture it was hard to be sure who had been killed (or processed) and who had simply been left behind or escaped the fighting. Several units in the area hadn't even arrived before Cerberus captured us. They might still be out there but with no idea where we were or how to contact us. For that matter the other resistance cells across the world would wonder why we; the main center of the whole operation had stopped responding. No doubt they would assume we were all dead, afterall we were hardly the first resistance group to suddenly go silent in this war.

And silent we would remain I assumed. The QEC would have been confiscated upon our arrival and I hadn't even thought about it until now. The odds that anyone had remembered to grab it were slim but we certainly couldn't go back and look for it anytime soon. Without it we would be stuck with conventional comms systems which were barely functional after the Reapers destroyed the satellites.

As you can see despite the escape my thoughts were still pretty bleak as we made it topside. Even the weather reflected my grim mood. I'd been hoping to see some sunlight after days trapped underground but the sky was overcast and gloomy, a typical autumn day. We were in the suburbs on the northern edge of the city now so finding somewhere to stay the night wasn't too difficult. With no one else left in this part of the city we felt relatively safe staying here. Once we had settled on staying here I found the nearest bed and fell straight asleep.

When I woke up the next day I'd decided what my next course of action was going to be. The only question would be how to convince the rest of the resistance to join me. It was still early in the morning at that time, the few who were awake ambling about slightly aimlessly as folks sometimes do when they're waiting for everyone else to wake up. In a way it was like being on a big campsite the same sense of roughing it, the same loss of normality.

I headed into the building we'd sort of claimed as a temporary command center. It was a church hall originally I think, hard to tell now. One wall of the building had badly collapsed and there was rubble strewn across the floor. Not what I suspected most of the Resistance or Alliance would picture if they were asked to imagine my main base. I spotted Colonel Travis hunched over a flickering computer console.

"How's it going?"

She noticed my approach and turned round to face me.

"Not well, systems here are worse than useless and most our tech got left at Welcome, or a Cerberus lock up. I'll need Xi Chan to take a look at this system really."

"If it can be fixed he'll get it working. What's the situation with everything else?"

"Our food rations consist of everything we've been able to scavenge from the nearby buildings and I've still got people looking. We've been quite lucky in that so far, I guess Reapers don't bother to clear out food just people. Morale is shaky at best, it's been boosted by our escape obviously but people are starting to ask what's next. And a lot of them, a lot of us have lost people."

I winced as she said that.

"I know,"

"It's not a criticism sir, we wouldn't be free or even alive if not for you. We're all behind you but some folks are being burnt out by the endless war. People aren't meant to live like this, in constant fear for their lives and their loved ones. I think Cadet Smith is in shock, all she keeps saying is she wants to speak to you."

"I'll check in on her as soon as I can and the others," I promised.

"Is there any chance of getting word to the people we left behind when we were captured? I know there were several units not caught up in the fighting."

"Well... I've done my best on that. Can't use the radio's particularly with those Capital ships still over the south part of the city."

"They're still there?" I asked surprised.

She nodded clearly exhausted from her night's work.

"From what we've seen Cerberus is still putting up a fight somehow. There was a massive explosion that wounded one of the Destroyers about an hour ago, not much activity since."

"Wounded?"

"You know what I mean sir, the Reapers act more like living creatures than machines. They seem to feel pain just like an organic creature would or at least that's what it seems like. "

"I guess it helps them react quickly in combat, they aren't just controlling the ship, the ship is their body. But you were telling me about contacting our troops?"

"Oh right, sorry sir I got distracted. I was saying we don't have any means to signal the troops but we did find some bikes on our scavenger hunt."

"Bikes?"

"Well I think they actually used to be called motorbikes sir, I guess someone here had a hobby involving ancient modes of transport. I sent out a couple of scouts with them to go and find our men, thought they might attract less attention than a skycar. I probably should have waited for your authorization but I didn't want to wake you and-"

"I put you in charge of all this for the night shift Colonel, you were well within your authority to give that order."

"But-"

I sensed her hesitation didn't actually come from not having gotten my permission, at least not exactly.

"You're worried about the men you sent out."

"Yes sir,"

"Colonel you could have asked my advise but sending anyone out on a mission like that is still going to involve a lot of unknowns. Your plan seems sensible, I couldn't have suggested anything better myself. Ultimately you gave what you thought was the right order at the time, that's fifty percent of being the other commanding officer."

"What's the other fifty percent?"

"Trying to make it look like you know what you're doing. Now I'm going to see to this Cadet and anyone else I can help out. Go get some rest, we'll have someone drag Coberg out of bed to take over from you."

She smiled for the first time I can remember.

"You might need to get a foghorn to wake him up, goodnight Admiral."

I headed over to the house where General Coberg was staying and managed to get him up (with only a dozen or so curses and threats from him). Once he'd been apprised of the situation we agreed that he would take command of organizing patrols and perimeter defenses and I would work on raising moral (Obviously I could have organized the defense just as well as the General could but that would've have left the job of comforting traumatized civilians to Coberg which would have been a disaster).

So my first proper job of the day was to go and see Cadet Smith. I found her sitting on a bench alone in our command center. She was looking down, her face hidden under a mess of brown hair avoiding eye contact with everyone. She looked so young but then again I recalled that she actually was. I think it was Xi Chan who told me at some meeting or other. She was one of the youngest Cadets the Alliance had ever taken on, given special treatment for her technical skill. The idea had been to keep her in the lab. No one had ever anticipated a war starting that would land this teenager on the front lines.

I took a seat next to her on the bench, last time I'd seen her she'd been trying to help a man with life threatening injuries. Traumatizing enough for anyone that young but while she'd seemed nervous at the time I thought she had been coping incredibly well, what had brought about this change?

"Karlakh is going to make a full recovery soon, you did an amazing job helping him." I told her. I got a small nod in response, aside from that she barely moved. I waited for awhile patiently and then eventually tried.

"I heard you wanted to speak to me about something?"

Nothing. At least not at first but then I heard a sound coming from her, a sob. Never having been the best at dealing with this sort of thing I felt awkward at first as I tried to comfort her. In the end I decided the best I could do was to stay with her so I waited patiently for the tears to end. Eventually she reached down and opened up her bag holding it up for me. I decided to humor her and take a look at what see wanted to show me which to my shock I recognized as the QEC device.

"How did you get this?" I asked in absolute astonishment.

"He, he asked me to get it to you."

The story as I later understood it from what the cadet told me filtered through my own experience was this. Her friend on Xi Chan's team Cadet Monroe (I'm ashamed to say I had to look the name up in my own book) met up with her after they were both released from their cells. Then Monroe suggested that they should try to grab the QEC before everyone escaped the base. There was a certain amount of commitment to duty shown here, the QEC was their main project in the team and a critical asset to the resistance. That said I think Monroe was trying to play the hero, living out some kind of Commander Shepard fantasy in his head.

From what I could tell Cadet Smith was set against the idea but eventually went after Monroe when he slipped away from the main group in the confusion. They managed to hack a computer terminal to get low level access that included a map of the facility. Even through they'd heard that the Reapers already controlled the area where the device was being kept Monroe refused to turn back. It sounds as if they got incredibly lucky in avoiding enemy contact until they reached the device. There they encountered some Husks as well as some 'pointy headed' Reaper soldiers (I tried to ask what these were but all I learned is that they weren't Marauders) who were examining the device. There were so many Husks that Monroe used a grenade to clear them.

The explosion alerted the Reapers nearby and the pair of them fled with the device. Eventually they ended up in a corridor near the lift, holding the door closed against an Adjutant. The lift eventually arrived but if they tried to make a run for it the creature would kill them before they made it out. Monroe told Sarah to take the device and run. As the lift doors closed she saw the door come off its hinges and Monroe was crushed, two seconds later the Adjutants head exploded.

It seems like a cruel joke to be shown that if you had just waited slightly longer your friend could have lived. There is no blame whatsoever for Sarah Smith, I wouldn't expect anyone to have acted differently in the circumstances. As for James Monroe? A hero's death with full honors, what he did wasn't wise or even sensible but it may still save many lives in the rest of this war.

In the end I had to leave the cadet with another officer who'd been apprised of the situation. I did what I could to reassure people but what good could I do this time? These people had gone though days of fear, many of them had lost loved ones. Platitudes were all but a waste of time, empty words that did little to dull the pain. I eventually settled on an idea, not exactly a traditional morale booster but it might help them come to terms with it all.

"A funeral?" Asked Major Coats.

"These people need closure, a chance to say goodbye to those they've lost," I explained.

"Yeah, that's true but who for? There's no lack of candidates," he said with some bitterness in his voice.

"Everyone. A joint ceremony for everyone lost in the war, everyone we can remember at least. Can you make the arrangements."

The Major smiled.

"Yeah I think I'd like that, or well... You know what I mean."

I nodded and then headed off to do what I'd been putting off. It had been on my mind ever since I'd found out we'd gotten the QEC back. I thought about my time in that cell when I thought I was going to die and all the other times I'd been in danger in this war. My thoughts had been of my son Jason and the woman I love, Kahlee Sanders. The woman I love. How rarely had I actually said those words to her? I'd told myself before that if I ever got out of that prison I'd tell Kahlee how I felt about her, try to say the things that really matter. I'd had Xi Chan set up a comm building for us but as I walked over to it I realized I was nervous. Funny that, you'd think as we get older we'd start to outgrow that sort of thing but my heart was in my mouth as I switched on the comm platform.

I dialed up the code for the Seventh Fleet which is stationed near the crucible. Once they saw who I was they let my loved ones know I wanted to talk. They arrived a few minutes later Jason, Kahlee and Cynthia too. I asked if they didn't mind me speaking to them separately and soon Jason was on the screen.

"Hey dad what's up?"

As bright and cheerful as ever, that's what I remember about him most.

"Oh just your old man checking in. How are you son?"

"I'm good, though I'm not used to living on military rations. Not sure how you put up with it to be honest."

"Oh we manage, haven't poisoned anyone in over a week." I say falling into the usual bad dad jokes.

"What're you working on over there by the way? Crucible project got you busy?"

"Yeah but if I told you about it I'd have to kill you, or get mum to do it."

"Well she's always wanted an excuse," I laughed.

We talked like that for quite a while just about any topic that came to mind. You never want to break off conversations like that but eventually he had to go.

"Listen dad, I really have to get going there's a schematic they want me to take a look though before lunch."

"Okay then but before you do, I just want you to know how proud of you me and your mum are. And if I don't make it out there-"

"Dad you'll be fine-"

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

"I just want you to know how much I love you that's all and I'm so sorry for all the times I couldn't be there for you."

"I love you too dad."

And that was it. I'm very glad I spoke to him but somehow I'm always expecting him to be angry over the times I wasn't there. But that's not really Jason, he's always been upbeat and cheerful. It's just my own guilty conscience that makes me expect it I guess.

I spoke to Cynthia next, just briefly. I informed her I was going to ask Kahlee to marry me. I wasn't sure quite how she was going to react but she beamed widely and said it was about time. I thanked her, she just told me to hang on to this one a little more tightly this time.

Then came Kahlee just as I was trying to work out what to say to her.

"Hey there, we were getting worried you stopped messaging for days!" Kahlee's face was full of concern and worry.

"Cerberus captured me," I replied honestly.

"Cerberus? On Earth? How?"

"Looks like one of their cells got stranded here before the Sol system was declared off limits. I managed to deal with them but they're not what I wanted to talk to you about."

"David you need to be more careful, if anything happened to you I-"

"I know. And I heard you were headed off to the front soon yourself. One of the officers said you were going just before you arrived."

"I have to take care of my students David and that means the biotics out in the field as much as it does the techs working here."

"I know. We both have dangerous lives, especially now. I've been thinking about that a lot recently. About the things that are most important in my life."

I looked up at her, directly into those crystal clear blue eyes of hers.

"I'm afraid I don't exactly have a ring to offer you. But I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you."

"Are you saying you want to...?" Her eyes widened with surprise and shock.

"If you'll have me."

She gave me one of her most radiant smiles, the kind that can light up an entire street in my opinion.

"Of course, of course I will marry you David Anderson. Once the war is over."

'Once the war is over?' I thought to myself. So the only thing left standing in the way was several thousand Reapers.

Piece of cake.


	28. Log 24

Log 24

Date: 18TH NOV 2186

Location: VANCOUVER, CANADA

"Thank you Admiral. The data you've been able to recover from Cerberus it's... Well it's more than I could have hoped for."

I was up early on the day of the funeral, awoken by an unexpected QEC call.

"It's my pleasure, Miss Lawson. We've all got to help each other out at the moment. Besides I heard you played a small part in getting us the data about Serov in the first place."

"Only a very small part," she clarified. "Do you know if the doctor made it out alive?"

I shook my head.

"Can't say for certain. He was still alive when I last saw him but the Reapers were flooding his facility."

"Hmm. Personally he always gave me the creeps but enough of Cerberus, how is Earth holding up?"

"I won't lie, things are looking pretty bleak right now. Not to mention this funeral service, I honestly don't know if I can face it, we've lost so many good people."

"You'll find a way Anderson, you were always the best the Alliance had to offer. Well almost the best," she added with a smile.

"What about you?" I asked.

"Do I even want to ask how you managed to get access to a QEC?"

"Probably n-" A red light started flashing in the background.

"Actually I'd better go Admiral. Good luck on Earth."

"Miss Lawson where are you?" I asked but she was already gone, faced with more combat I assumed. I sighed, wondering who she was fighting at the moment (Reapers, Cerberus maybe Geth) and whether or not she would survive. I knew that by reputation she was tough but every fight these days seemed to take a few more people out of the galaxy. It wouldn't be long until there wasn't anyone left.

The funeral itself was even worse than I expected it to be. I know I was the one to suggest it, even now I think it was the right call but it wasn't an experience I'd ever want to repeat.

We held the ceremony about a week after I'd suggested it to give the units we'd left behind in Seattle a chance to be here. They arrived yesterday, relieved to see the rest of us were still alive after we'd disappeared. Looking at the men who've come back, there's a haunted look in their eyes. From what I've gathered so far they had a pretty rough time of it while we were held captive. For awhile they thought they might be the last of the resistance in the area. Reuniting our groups again has brought a real boost of morale to both sides.

Things have been fairly quiet while we waited for their arrival. Mostly my days were spent coordinating what's left of the global resistance. It's not looking good, the Reapers are pushing aggressively and some of the resistance cells have been forced to abandon their bases. It's causing us to be more spread out and as a result we've lost contact with some groups. Not enough QEC's to go around and using conventional comm systems causes the Capital ships to descend from orbit. Our best hope now as I see it, is to start thinking about concentrating our efforts into a single area. Some of the other leaders think the same but we still have to tackle the question of how to get there given how scattered we are.

The rest of my job is more local, using our limited scouts and patrols to keep apprised of what the Reapers are up to in the area. Mostly their urban actives have pushed out from Vancouver to other cities like Richmond which are too far south for us to worry about for the moment. They do have some presence outside the cities as well however, mostly in the form of patrols of footsoldiers looking for stragglers. We try to hit these as often as we can but sometimes they're simply too large (heard tell of a patrol of 10,000 Husks coming through once) or too close to our own base to risk drawing attention. So far we've managed to drag Reaper attention away from ourselves with a few well placed attacks.

Then we came to the day in question. It was raining even before we started. It's a cliche I know but in a way I think it's better. Makes it feel like a better send off, like the world understands that today is special. A day where it's OK to be grim and gloomy. The actual event was held outside, in a clearing in the woods just north of the city. No graves dug, we had no bodies to bury, instead a small mound was covered in little wooden markers each with a name carved into it. It was depressing to see just how many there were. At first we only wrote in names we could remember that didn't come back from our encounter with Cerberus. Then as word got out more and more people began to suggest names they wanted to pay tribute to. From our battles with the Reapers, the fall of Vancouver, the deaths in the initial invasion. Then friends and family lost in the war raging in the galaxy around us. A high tally in all and now all of them stood on the hill as reminders of past mistakes.

We all gathered to stand before the hill looking at all the markers. Someone from the resistance turned out to have been a vicar before the war so she stood at the front and said a few words. Then one by one people would come up and speak about a loved one or a friend they were saying goodbye to. The rest of us would stand and listen in respectful silence, often wrapped up in thoughts of our own losses.

As I walked up to the stand some of the names caught my eye as though accusing me. Maria? I'd taken her out of that police station to somewhere I thought she'd be safe. In reality I'd delivered her straight into what would become her tomb. Corporal Hetford? I pointed him out to Shepard and said men like him would need a leader, giving it as the reason I should stay behind. The man was dead less than two hours later. And Jeff, whose name I couldn't even spot among so many crosses, though it would haunt me forever. I just hoped I'd be able to have his courage.

I can't really recall my speech exactly. I praised everyone present for all their dedication to the cause and thanked those who were no longer with us for their contribution. I think I told them that no matter how dark things got in this war we had to hold on to moments like these because they were what really made us human. I hope so, it would've been a damn good line. After I had spoken Xi Chan stood up a gave a eulogy for cadet Monroe that Sarah had written but not felt able to read out.

We didn't manage to get to the next person because during the next transition Will started yelling and stormed up to the front. For a moment I felt a flash of irritation, anger almost at his behavior. His youth and grief could excuse a lot but I'd hoped he'd have been respectful today of all days. Instead he was flying into a rage, pushing people out of the way to get to the front. I was about to stop him when I spotted what had wound him up and my blood ran cold. I could see Jeff's marker now, over the left hand side but there was also a second name carved into it. The name of his wife and Will's mother.

I pushed through the crowd towards the front. By the time I reached it Will was screaming at one of the people on the stage while two men did their best to hold him back. Major Coats tried to intercede with little success.

"I'm sorry son but there's been no sign of her we just thought it would be best-"

"She's not dead! She's not!"

I finally managed to shoulder my way through the crowds and since Will was insensible at this stage I turned to Coats to make some sense of the situation.

"Is she? I mean, what happened?"

"Uh- no one's entirely sure sir. All we know for sure is she wasn't one of the prisoners we brought back with us. Maybe a cell got missed."

Could that be true? Had I left some my own people behind in our hurry to escape?

"Bullshit!" Will's voice cut like a whip as he focused on our conversation.

"No one remembers seeing mum at the prison or on the transports. She could have just got separated from us before the battle."

I glanced at Coats.

"Is it possible?"

He shook his head gravely.

"It doesn't seem likely sir. After you were taken our remaining squads swept the area for any survivors. They were interrupted by Reapers so maybe they missed something but well it just feels like a fool's hope sir."

"I know she's still out there," Will said looking at me beseechingly.

"We just need to keeping looking."

"If you're asking me to send out a squad. Look Will I'm sorry but our resources are stretched pretty thin-"

His expression instantly switched from hope to contempt.

"Fine then I'll go on my own."

"You can't, it's too dangerous," came back the automatic reply without bothering to consult my brain.

"You can't stop me Anderson. What're you gonna do keep me in chains as a prisoner for the rest of the war? Drag me along with the resistance from one battle to the next? That's what it'll take to keep me from leaving."

I could see it in his eyes that he meant it. Unless I kept him locked up I'd be lucky not to wake up with a knife to my throat. It wasn't an overreaction, not really. The kid was only seeing things in black and white right now. He wanted to save his mother and god help anyone that got in his way.

"Alright I can see there's no stopping you," I said.

"But I'd still rather not see you go without cooler heads at your side. I suggest having a few words with the Colonel about that after we've left."

I could hear a ripple of whispers running through the crowd after I'd finished speaking but it was Will that vocalized their concerns out loud.

"Left? Where are you going?"

"London," I announced. "Many of the resistance cells around the world want to focus their efforts on a single target and I have to be there to lead them. Any volunteers are most welcome to join us."

As I had somewhat expected I could still see a certain amount of concern in the crowd.

"Please do not worry, I will be leaving you in very capable hands."

"What about you?" A couple of voices in the crowd called out.

"My friends, after everything we have been through together I assure you that I will be okay on this journey. And when we are united we will find a way to get some payback for our fallen comrades."

A good speech I like to think given it was rather spur of the moment. Back in our 'command center' however my fellow officers didn't quite share the same optimism as my surprise announcement.

"It's madness. You can't go to London."

"I agree with you that it will be difficult but it's vital for me to be there in person."

"That's not agreeing with me I was saying you can't go."

We were in the reception area that had been appropriated by us as a meeting room. Several maps were spread out on the table (actual paper ones, Xi Chan had declared the computer systems here a lost cause) which Major Coats was studying. Coberg and Xi Chan were also in the room along with Colonel Travis and me who were in a bit of an argument.

Strangely enough Lara was absent as she had already agreed to accompanying me. Apparently the Justicar order had been considering trying to reunite themselves again even before the rest of us had. Although it was incredibly rare for the order to ever gather in one place Matriarch Ophelia had ultimately insisted on it (I think I offended Lara by assuming she was the head of the order. She insisted that all Justicar were considered equal after passing their training, Matriarch Ophelia was simply the oldest and most well respected in the order).

In theory our only task now was to work out how I was going to get there but it was proving to be difficult.

"You'd have to cross what, two and a half thousand miles just to reach the Eastern seaboard? And then you try to cross the Atlantic assuming you can find a boat and you get killed because there's at least 200 Reapers patrolling that area looking for ships. Sir."

"I know we've heard bad things about the Atlantic-" I began.

"Voyage of damned I've heard people call it," someone, possibly Coberg muttered.

"But it really as dangerous as they say?" I finished.

"Yes sir," replied Coats. "There's no cover out on the open water sir. Reapers use it as an easy way to restrict movement."

As the afternoon worn on it did seem increasingly hopeless. There was simply no way of going east that didn't end up in being captured or vaporized. Then Coats made a rather surprising suggestion.

"What about heading west sir?"

"That would be even further," I pointed out.

"I know that sir but if it might be much easier to reach the eastern most point of Russia than crossing the Atlantic. Once we're on the Euroasia mainland we can try to find a route westwards."

"It'd still take a very long time, which increases the risk of the journey not to mention the risk that we won't reach the city soon enough to make a difference."

"That might not necessarily be the case Admiral," Xi Chan interjected.

"Reaching Russia does open certain possibilities. Personally I would advise using the Zakhar Express Way."

"The what?"

"It was an old underground rail project, originally the vision of the then Russian President Zakhar Sokolov in 2098. The concept was a single line that ran across the spine of Russia. It was intended to replace the old Trans-Siberian railway system. The main line runs all the way from the Bering Strait right though to Oslo in nearby Norway."

I exchanged glances with the other officers in the room.

"Then why have we never heard of it?"

Xi Chan shrugged.

"The Project was scrapped in 2155 as skycars were proving a far more efficient means of transportation. I only know about it because it was a case study when I was learning Engineering at Moscow State University."

"So is there anything left that we can use?"

"The project was nearing completion when it was scrapped, apparently the cost of removing it all was so great it ended up simply being abandoned."

"And the Reapers don't know about it?" I asked somewhat skeptically.

"They may well be aware of it's existence but I suspect it would be considered a low priority given its disuse."

"And you think this will work?" I asked.

Xi Chan shrugged.

"If you have to attempt the journey then it's probably the best option available. At the very least most of the tunnel is too far underground to be targeted by Reaper ships. Should warn you however that some sections of the track run close enough to the surface to be targetable."

"If they know that we're even down there," laughed Coats. "I figure it's gotta be worth a look Admiral."

"Alright then, any ideas how we get to Russia?"

"Actually I might have an idea on that score," said Coberg.

"Just need to contact a few old friends."


	29. Log 25

Log 25

Date: 19TH NOV 2186

Location: GULF OF ALASKA

The 'old friends' in this case turned out to be his former ace in the hole when he was running the Vancouver base. In other words he was referring to the submarines which he had previously referred to as 'phase two'. After they had taken out the Destroyers enabling our escape, the subs had been forced to play a game of cat and mouse with the Reapers. Staying submerged as much as possible to avoid detection. I can't imagine they were terribly thrilled to be called on by us again but they'd shown a knack for avoiding detection that would certainly come in handy.

"Why can't we just sail the sub directly to Britain? Avoid the long trip through Russia altogether." I asked.

The General shook his head.

"The captain says there's no good way to get round the Americas, all the routes are too well guarded. Bottom line is that it's his ship and he won't do it."

"Fair enough," I replied. "So they'll pick us up at Horseshoe Bay and drop us off at... What was it called again?"

"It is..." Coberg peered down at his notes. "Uelen. Apparently that's where the this underground line begins. Right on the easternmost point of Russia."

"Right and is everything prepared now?"

"It is, we leave in one hour to arrive at the Bay shortly before dawn. Our Captain wants to have cover of darkness to get us all onto his tub. Anderson, why are you doing this?"

"You've already signed up General," I pointed. "Not having second thoughts are you?"

"I go wherever the fight is. Looks like London is the right place. I asked why you're doing this?"

"Same reason, why you think I had some ulterior motive?"

"Had a hard time figuring you out Anderson. Never took you for a man of action at first, not after you took that politician job."

"Councilor position," I corrected him. "But you're focusing on the wrong thing. I joined the Council because I thought I'd be able to do more good there. You ought to ask yourself why I left."

He looked for a moment like he wanted to ask something else but simply shrugged it off and walked away.

An hour later we set off with Colonel Travis agreeing to accompany us with an escort to the bay before heading back to lead what would remain of our resistance cell. Those that were coming with us were Coberg and most of his remaining men, Lara and her crew, Xi Chan and his team, Major Coats with a handful of Alliance soldiers and volunteer resistance fighters. A small army but still an army nonetheless.

As we made our way towards the bay I caught General Coberg staring south across the water. There wasn't really much to see in the dark, not that there was much to see in any case. I knew we would see no more than a pile of rubble once dawn did break.

"Wondering what happened to the Cerberus base?" I asked. We knew the Reaper Capital ships had departed Richmond yesterday but there was little indication of how the battle had gone. We could assume the Reapers had won of course but if anyone else had managed to escape I couldn't say.

"No I was thinking about my base in Vancouver," he replied.

"I'd hoped to be able to visit it again someday. Odds are I'll never see it again."

"You might do when the war's over."

He gave me a look that mirrored my own thoughts. 'And when might that be' his expression seemed to say.

"Do you think we could've held out?"

"We've discussed this before," I pointed out.

"I know all that. But if we hadn't tried to run that mission I mean. Do think there was any way we could've..." his voice trailed off.

"For awhile longer maybe but not forever. No one's ever managed to hold back the Reapers before. Not long term at any rate."

"I think I was better off not knowing what the Reapers are capable of. It would've been better if none of us ever had to find out."

I nodded but didn't reply. I wasn't surprised Coberg had been tempted to revisit his old base but personally I was done looking back at old ghosts. I'd left all that behind at the funeral. Now I just wanted to get back to London, my hometown and bring the Reapers some pain.

We pressed on and managed to reach the rendezvous only slightly behind schedule. They were already waiting for us when we reached the beach. Four officers lined up at attention with one more stepping forward to greet us.

"Captain Gregory Hellman of the SNV Seaborn sir," he said saluting as he reached us. Clearly a man who liked doing things by the book.

"I'm Admiral Anderson of the Alliance Forth Fleet. What does SNV stand for incidentally?" I asked somewhat confused.

"Systems Alliance Naval Vehicle," he clarified though to be honest it just left me more confused.

"This is officially an Alliance Vessel?" I asked. The Alliance only operates in space, I'd never heard of SNV's or of the Alliance having land or sea based assets on Earth. As an Admiral I found this gap in my knowledge vaguely disconcerting.

"That is correct, the project was designed as a top secret homeworld defense system. It was thought Thanix cannons deployed in this way might serve as a useful last line of defense. Something enemy forces would be likely to overlook which could be used to make strategic strikes to aid the counter attack."

A weapon designed for the possibility that Earth might be captured? When I'd become an Admiral I'd been assured that some measures were being taken in case my warnings turned out to be correct. I'd assumed it had been a lie to keep me quiet but apparently they had built something albeit on less than a thousandth of the scale required. I shook myself mentally, for all my warnings even I hadn't really understood the scale of the Reaper threat. If I'd known about this project I might have thought it was enough myself.

The captain introduced the rest of his officers and then we all fell in and marched towards the waiting sub. I found Captain Gregory marching beside me as we went.

"You're late sir," the captain pointed out.

"You wanted us here before sunrise, we're here before sunrise," I replied.

"We're still behind schedule sir, we will need to leave quickly to avoid being spotted by any Reaper patrols."

And with that we were inside for our 32 hour journey to Russia. As with every other sub I'd ever been in the Seaborn felt cramped and claustrophobic. I'm not sure why but no matter how big they build the sub (this one was large enough to accommodate the crew of 75 and the nearly 250 men I was bringing to London and theoretically still had room for 125 more) they always feel small. It's always seemed strange to me as in the early days of interstellar space travel space ships themselves were also just the same. I shipped out to the first contact war in a shuttle so small we were virtually breathing down each others necks. But while subs have remained the same way, space vessels had come leaps and bounds forward (you should have seen my shock the first time I realized I could call a ship 'home'). I guess the priority in the last thirty years has obviously been on space fairing technology with other modes of transport left largely ignored. I did try to discuss this idea with some of my fellow shipmates. Unfortunately they started joking and asked me what it was like back in the stone age.

Giving up on that observation as a lost cause I headed back to the officers cabin. To my surprise I arrived to find Karlakh waiting for me. From the look in his eye in was in full firebrand mode at the moment though I couldn't for the life of me work out why.

"Admiral,"

"What is it son?"

"Thank you for saving my life," he said formally his tone level. "I wouldn't have made it without you or the girl."

"It's no problem, just doing my duty," I replied wondering if I hadn't misread his initial expression (it's not uncommon to misinterpret alien body language afterall).

"Actually there is a problem," he said in a confrontational manner reconfirming my earlier suspicions.

"Why did you drag the girl onto this mission?"

"The girl?" I murmured trying to recall who he meant. Then it hit me, he was referring to the person who'd helped treat his wounds, Cadet Sarah Smith. But she wasn't on the mission, at least she wasn't assigned to it.

"She's not assigned to- Where did you last see her?" I asked the question overtaking the platitude as realization began to dawn on me.

"Downstairs in the mess hall, keeping to herself as I recall."

I tore down the corridor and the stairs to reach the mess hall with Karlakh following close behind.

"I don't see her," I pointed out.

"Over there," he said pointing to the far corner where a lone figure was standing, hunched out a dinner tray. Her face was barely visible under the Alliance issue cap she'd borrowed, her hair tucked away or cut off perhaps at this distance I couldn't tell. I glanced back at Karlakh who noticed my surprise.

"You remember well the appearance of one who saves your life," he shrugged.

"Especially if you're a Drell," I added, recalling their famously excellent memories.

He shook his head.

"It's more than that, she reminds me of someone I once knew from the camps."

"What happened to her? Is she-"

"She was in our group when Lara rescued us, she almost got away too but the warlord was too determined to keep her. They both ended up getting left behind on Khar'shan so they're probably dead by now. I'm glad he's gone but I'll miss her, we spoke every day before the Reapers came."

"Maybe she got away?" I suggested.

"You didn't see it Admiral. The Reapers were everywhere, killing everyone, butchering them."

His eyes seemed to gaze at something far away.

"Terrified I run from room to room, desperate to keep up with the others, knowing the monsters are close behind. We find a large landing platform on the roof where our one hope of escape is waiting. Outside I can look across the fields I used to work now covered in blood. The slaves are still there and the masters, cut up into pieces, screaming. The machines are killing anything that moves."

There's true panic and fear clearly evident on his face now, unsure what's going on I shake him roughly, trying to bring him back to reality.

"My apologies Admiral,it's not uncommon for Drell to become lost in their memories, particularly disturbing ones."

"Are you alright?" I asked concerned.

"I'm fine Admiral don't worry about me, though it is best if I avoid accessing those memories for some time. For now you need to focus on the problem in front of you," he said pointing at the girl.

It was clear to me that he was struggling with his memories of Khar'shan more than he wanted to admit but he still had a point. I headed into the mess to confront the Cadet but soon decided on a less confrontational approach. Instead seeing Xi Chan hurrying past I called him into a spare room to have a word. There was some shouting some of it mine. Several other high ranking members of the resistance were called and eventually Sarah was called in and encouraged to explain. The upshot soon became fairly clear. After her traumatic experience in the Cerberus base the cadet had been kept under observation by various officers.

Unfortunately the system was disorganized to say the least. On the day before we left she asked to go out for a walk alone in the woods, to clear her head after the funeral she'd said. Instead she crept back into camp and quickly managed to lose herself in the group preparing to head out on our mission to London. In the confusion around organizing and setting out on the mission no one had noticed her absence until it was too late.

My initial reaction was to send her back home immediately but there were two issues with this. The first was Captain Hellman who insisted there was no way they could double back without risking the ship. I tried to suggest that he could keep the cadet on board for awhile and then once the coast seemed to be clear return to drop her off but he wasn't having any of it. Her experience aside, her youth alone had convinced the man that she would be a nuisance aboard the ship. Potentially I could order him to do so but as he was not under my jurisdiction (it was an Alliance project but ultimately he was still a naval officer). This meant he could delay by requesting confirmation from his naval admiral (which given the state of the command structure and our communications infrastructure might mean waiting months).

Secondly she simply refused to go. In many ways I understood and sympathized. People react to the trauma of the war in different ways. Due to her youth our initial response had been to remove all factors of stress which of course included the incredibly complex work she had been doing every day until our capture. We had been reluctant to allow her to lock herself away in the lab but perhaps some work would have allowed her to regain a sense of normality? Instead she was left with nothing to do each day but think about her survivors guilt. Small wonder she decided to try and come along, to continue doing her duty.

Honestly I'm not a psychologist which is possibly the worst issue here. The Reapers have fractured our society so far that we're losing vital skills we once had access to. Before the war I would have immediately called in a specialist to help deal with an issue like this but the option simply didn't exist anymore. The Reapers do more than than kill you, they destroy your civilization and as it goes your values and beliefs are slowly stripped away with it. Even if you keep trying to do the right thing they peel away the tools you once had to help.

"I always want to help but sometimes I don't know how," I muttered to myself. I like to think that's true of most folk really. That they look at the state of the galaxy and wish they could do something positive but they don't know where to start. Now here I was wanting to help this young cadet, unsure what the best course of action might be.

Eventually as I went to bed early that night in preparation for an early start the next day I resolved to speak to the Captain about this again in the morning. I would make him take her back to safety, even threaten him if I had to.

I was woken up by Daniels in the middle of the night along with the rest of the officers.

"Sir, the captain wants to speak to you right away. There's been a murder."


	30. Log 26

Log 26

Date: 20TH NOV 2186

Location: BERING STRAIT

I was shocked when I first heard the news. After everything we had faced in the war, the possibility of such an ordinary evil as a murder seemed... Odd? Strange? Impossible? I couldn't quite find the right word to describe it. Unexpected certainly but that much was obvious. Not to mention truly maddening. Maybe it's irrational but even though I knew it was at least possible that one of our group was indoctrinated I'd still started to trust all of them. To feel like we were a team, forged in our shared hardships. The news felt like a sudden cold shower of reality as the hard truth was delivered. I could 'hope' that this was some unrelated incident but I could already feel myself being dragged back into a world of suspicion and fear.

I hurried through the corridors to meet the Captain who was already waiting at the crime scene. The scene spoke for itself in volumes. A man in a naval uniform lay face down against the deck, a plasma tool sticking out of his back. His gun remained in its holster, unused. On the wall in front of him there was an open panel with several wires pulled out. Odd, I would've pegged the man as a guard not a mechanic.

"Had a good look Admiral?" Asked Captain Hellman.

"What would your deduction be?"

"I can understand you're angry-" I began.

"Because one of my men has been killed less than twelve hours after your troupe came on board my vessel? Very astute of you." he interrupted in a slightly mocking tone which swiftly turned serious.

"We can discuss the repercussions later Admiral. First as the officer in charge of our passengers I would like to hear your thoughts on who might have done this."

From that little speech I gleaned two things. Firstly and rather unsurprisingly this incident was, as far as Captain Hellman was concerned, our fault. I'm sure I would've felt much the same way in his place, even without knowing that one of us might be indoctrinated (which he didn't yet). The second was (I hoped) a sense that he was more concerned with solving the case than throwing his weight around. Proceeding on that assumption I ran through what little I could make of the crime scene.

"Well clearly the victim was taken by surprise, no time to call for help or even draw his weapon. So he was either busy working on this," I pointed at the panel.

"Or he already knew his killer and didn't suspect him. What intrigues me is that an engineer should be armed at all in the first place."

"He's not an engineer, he's is- he was the guard stationed to protect the comm room at the end of the corridor here. We've no idea what he was doing working on this, as I'm sure you know it was supposed to be your man doing it."

"My man?" I asked confused. "I didn't authorize any-"

The Captain frowned.

"I was assured that you had suggested it Admiral. Are you denying that now?"

"Denying?" I took a deep breath.

"Clearly there's been some miscommunication here. Who exactly was meant to be working here?"

"That Salarian fellow you brought with you, whatever his name is."

"Xi Chan?"

"I guess so. He was taking a look at the issues we've been having with the comm systems. I actually found him working on it earlier that day, he said you'd asked him to work on it. I was going to speak to you about assigning your men to repair work on my sub but he seemed to know what he was doing. He said that he'd traced the problem to faulty wiring in that junction box and that it should be easy to repair. We'd been trying to fix the issue ourselves for weeks so in the end I just left him to it. Later we detected an attempt to send a communication from the sub shortly before the entire comm system failed. When we went to investigate we discovered this."

"He was working on the comm system?" I muttered. In my mind's eye I recalled our first meeting months ago (though it honestly feels more like years). Xi Chan had been working on the comm system then as well before he was interrupted. Later during the General's failed assault mission the comm system had broadcast our positions to the Reaper troops. Was it possible that he had been responsible?

The simple answer was yes. I'd seen more than enough of his technical capabilities to know he could manage it. And thanks to the 'magic' of indoctrination anyone could have been turned into an enemy agent no matter how innocent they might seem.

"We need to speak to him immediately then. I definitively did not authorize him to work on any part of the sub, " I said definitively.

How did he react to being taken for questioning? Surprise which soon turned to nervous anxiety. Captain Hellman looked pleased to see it, he thought it hid a guilty conscience, that he already had his man. I was much more hesitant, I tried telling myself that it was just because I knew him so well that I was reluctant to believe he could be the culprit. But that was just it. I did know him well, well enough to know how he'd react in this situation even if he wasn't guilty.

But there was no time for sympathy now. I had to look completely impartial to reassure the Captain. Although I outranked him and my forces outnumbered his he still retained control of the vessel (and his men were certainly the only ones who knew how to operate it). I didn't like to think what he might do if he came to perceive us as a threat to his own crew.

"Admiral? What's this about?" I could certainly hear the fear in his voice/ We hadn't told him anything yet but he could see it was serious.

"We'll be asking the questions Xi Chan," I said to assert the role I now had to assume.

"Yesterday you were found working on the comm system. When did you leave that area?"

"It would've been seven- uh that is nineteen hundred hours sir."

Fifteen minutes before the murder, very convenient.

"Exactly nineteen hundred hours?"

"Uh just before, I noticed the time just as I was-"

"And you can prove that?"

"What?"

"I asked if you could prove that Mr. Chan."

"Crewman Denning can verify my statement."

"Crewman Denning is dead. The deceased do not make very good alibi's Mr. Chan, particularly in a murder enquiry."

I thought the captain was going a little far with that one but I stayed the course. I had to let the interview play out for Xi Chan's sake as much as anyone else's. Still it wasn't easy, the news of the crewman's death threw him into a panic and eventually I had to insist he be allowed to calm down.

"I asked the crewman to hold something in place while I went to fetch a new power regulator."

"Why didn't you return?"

"Well I was going to but then you-"

"I called him over to talk about our runaway cadet," I realized having worked out the timings. Xi Chan nodded eagerly.

"By the time we'd finished discussing it they wouldn't let me back into the section, said it was a secure area locked down for the night."

I glanced at the captain to gauge his reaction. He noticed and gave a grudging jerk of the head, halfway between a nod and a shake of the head. My guess was he could see it was plausible but wasn't convinced. Well to be fair there was still one issue left to be cleared up.

"Why did you lie about receiving orders from me to work on the comm system?"

"What? But I was told you gave the order."

"And who told you that?"

"I can't really remember, I was with several officers and then the topic of the broken radio came up and someone said you'd already gotten authorization for me to fix it."

"Xi Chan this is important. We have to know who told you that I authorized that repair."

"Uh, well I guess, I mean I think it was Coberg. General Coberg."

We allowed Xi Chan to leave after that.

"So, what was your take on that?" Hellman asked.

"Probably about the same as yours. Xi Chan didn't have time to commit the murder and send the message-"

The captain shook his head, interrupting me.

"I'm afraid I can't fully agree. Xi Chan was working on the system prior to departing. I'm not discounting the possibility he somehow rigged it to send automatically."

"Maybe but logically speaking it seems likely that Crewman Denning was murdered so that the killer could gain access to the comm room," I countered.

"That suggests to me that they weren't aware that the system hadn't been fully repaired yet."

"That's still just speculation but I can see some sense in it. The interview still answered some questions though. Your man said he left Denning holding something, that explains why we found him at the panel instead of guarding the door."

"And then someone sneaked up behind him and stabbed him. His guard was down, probably wasn't expecting anyone to try anything."

"Yes well he didn't know we'd brought aboard a psycho," the captain muttered bitterly.

"And when he was killed he dropped what he was holding and the system shorted out before the message was sent," I mused.

"The killer shot himself in the foot by killing Denning?" snorted Hellman.

"Well it's all a lovely theory but it doesn't get us any closer to the culprit."

"Yes it does," I asserted.

"I don't think we can assume the timing was a coincidence. Whoever actually was responsible must have known Xi Chan was fixing the system and assumed the job was finished when they saw he'd left."

"The entire mess hall saw him after he left the comm room. In all the commotion you caused afterwards I can't remember if anyone slipped away."

"Then we need to focus on tracking down the people that knew he was fixing it in the first place. Starting with the man who gave the to repair it in the first place."

The Captain shook his head at this.

"No way. I know Coberg, me and him go way back, years before the war. That's how he knew about the subs in the first place. There's no way that man would ever do anything like this. You've worked with the guy for months now, how could you even suggest it?"

"He could be-" I started to say before stopping myself. If I mentioned that I suspected a member of our resistance was indoctrinated by the Reapers we'd be lucky not to end up swimming for the shore. Luckily the captain was too caught up in what he was saying to notice my slip.

Unfortunately the reprieve was relatively brief with the arrival of another of the subs crewman spelling our downfall.

"Captain we've detected three Reaper Destroyers on an intercept course."

"What!? Is there any indication we've been detected?"

"Not exactly sir, the ships are sweeping a longitudinal line that will cross our current path at the drop off site. We've detected them running continuous scans however."

"They're searching along that entire axis? It doesn't make much sense, it seems too much of a coincidence that a random sweep exactly coincidences with our destination."

"Unless they only received partial coordinates," I reasoned before realizing I'd accidentally spoken out loud.

"The transmission the killer sent out before it was interrupted? But why would anyone on board want to draw the Reapers to us? That would be suicide."

I thought about keeping my own council to try and rectify my earlier slip but Captain Hellman was alerted to it now and noticed my hesitation.

"What aren't you telling me Admiral? You might outrank me but this is my ship and I demand to know what is going on here."

"Well..." I began.


	31. Log 27

Log 27

Date: 21ST NOV 2186

Location: SOMEWHERE IN RUSSIA

All things considered Captain Hellman had taken the news rather well I reflected, while watching his ship disappear beneath the waves. Afterall he had hung around long enough to drop us off on the Russian mainland with all of our gear and supplies. He'd dropped us in a place apparently called Lavrentiya 150 klicks away from the start of the track in the town of Uelen. Frankly given the circumstances it was the best we could have hoped for even if it did leave us with quite a trek.

First impressions of the place we'd arrived at? Cold. Just want to put that on record now. Very cold in fact, not to mention deserted. Few people here and not much in the way of anything else either. Once you got beyond the thin strip of buildings clustered around the shoreline the open space seemed to stretch out almost endlessly in front of us.

Cadet Sarah was dropped off with us (after the revelation of an enemy agent on board I hadn't had any chance to convince the captain to take her back with him). Not quite sure what I can do about that really. For the moment she's coming with us. The only thing that eases my conscience on that one is that we aren't looking for a fight on this mission. At least not until we reach London and with any luck we will make contact with other resistance cells in Europe long before that. In the meantime she's doing what she can with our QEC device. No platforms in the village to plug it into but apparently they are available in Uelen. I certainly hope so, there's a lot of people I'd like to check in with right about now.

We didn't stay long as we wanted to start making some progress on our long march northwards. Some of the locals agreed to come with us, mostly as guides rather than resistance members. I can't really blame them for their reluctance to join up, the war simply hasn't come here yet. No matter how terrible a war might seem there are always plenty of places like this one where absolutely nothing is going on. Still I can't help but worry about these people. They might be safe now while the enemy is focused on the major cities but they're living on borrowed time. Eventually the Reapers will come by and annihilate the whole village in a single attack leaving no trace of it behind. If there's one thing you can say about our enemy it's that they're through and meticulous. They will come here, it's just a matter of time.

But my mind wasn't on the job at that time. I wasn't thinking about the threat to the village or Cadet Sarah or on the new recruits we'd taken on. No, I hadn't forgotten or given up on the investigation I'd started back on the sub. From one point of view it was still possible that the agent that betrayed us at Vancouver had died there or subsequently and that the betrayer on the sub had been a member of the crew that had become indoctrinated. Afterall there was certainly no rule that said there could only be one enemy agent in the ranks.

We certainly weren't the only cell in the Resistance to have come up against the issue of indoctrination. I remember one of the worst cases I ever heard about being in China. They picked a refugee who agreed to join the cause. For weeks they fought side by side with him with no animosity or reason to suspect him. Then one day he walked into the barracks with an assault rifle and shot every soldier inside before turning the gun on himself. The trouble is that it's just so insidious. Many of our operatives are overworked, burned out on stress and terrified that they might not live to see tomorrow. Given all these factors it's harder to find ones who aren't acting strangely and if they do break hard to say if they were suffering from indoctrination or post traumatic stress. The best I could do I supposed is focus on observations from the few indoctrinated people I've come across personally.

On that train of thought I wondered idly if Dr. Serov might also have been indoctrinated. It was certainly possible, if his plan to transform millions into Adjutants had succeeded and then they had all switched sides? He would've ended up handing the entire North American continent into total Reaper control. At times I thought I could even see signs of it, the madness in his eyes, the way Harbinger tried to give him orders.

And yet oddly enough he still tried to fight the Reapers, throwing everything he had against them. As I've remarked before the process of indoctrination often builds on existing desires and beliefs and twists them to serve the purpose of the enemy in some way. Serov in some way actually believed his insane plan would work. He fought the Reapers when they arrived because that kind of indoctrination could only do so much. Lead him on a path to his (and humanity's) eventual downfall perhaps but not force him to directly serve his enemy.

Maybe knowing that can help me identify the killer because in all seriousness I don't actually believe that he or she isn't still among us (it was just a vague hope I was clinging to at the time). To have avoided detection for so long they must've been allowed to still retain their own identity. Does that make it easier to determine who it is? Who might be most easily swayed by ideas that make them want to support enemies or betray friends? The answer I kept coming round to was the obvious one, General Coberg.

It wasn't the first time I'd had suspicions about him, he had been the one to propose the failed mission in Vancouver. He'd survived the Reaper processor ship (though so had everyone we rescued that day) and most damningly of all it was Coberg that had ordered the sub radio fixed just hours before it was used to alert Reapers to our location (probably). In the past whenever these concerns gripped me I waved them aside, telling myself I had a personal bias against the man that was clouding my judgment. And frankly I'd also wanted to avoid a confrontation with the man who'd become the Resistance's de facto second in command. But in fact if I didn't do something soon the damage he could do if he was indoctrinated would be catastrophic.

So having taken a considerable amount of time (several days in fact) to consider it I finally confronted him. It was in the evening when we'd made camp for the night. Tomorrow would be our last march before reaching the station. I finally decided I didn't want to get on that train with anyone I didn't trust completely. I approached Coberg who was sitting by the campfire (Reaper presence in this part of the world was nonexistent so we were less careful about hiding our presence) and hit him with it.

"Why did you say I authorized repairs to the comm system?"

"I'm sorry?"

"Back on the sub you told Xi Chan I wanted to him to do repairs. I never mentioned anything like that to you."

General Coberg frowned and held his hands up to the fire to warm them (did I mention it was really cold yet) before responding.

"Oh right that. My apologies Admiral but with some members of the resistance I find it easier to get them to follow orders if they think it came from you originally." He explained.

"Why were you even interested in getting it fixed in the first place?" I asked.

"I asked one of the officers if they had somewhere we could plug in that QEC thing you're always going on about so we could check in with the rest of the resistance cells. I thought it was a good idea at the time but they told me the comm room was suffering power issues. Was worried we might end up damaging our device."

"And yet when it was finally fixed or nearly fixed rather than use the QEC with its secured communications someone tried to send a message from the unsecured radio system."

"I wasn't allowed anywhere near the comm room after the incident, none of us were. Are you accusing me of something Admiral?"

"A man died General and thus far we have no idea who the killer was. Where were you at nineteen hundred hours on the night before we disembarked from the SNV Seaborn?"

He gave me a long cold stare for that, I think he was trying to work out how serious I was about this whole thing.

"I thought you knew me better than that Anderson. We've never quite seen eye to eye but I didn't think you had me pegged for a traitor or a murderer."

"Given that a man died and we got dumped about a hundred miles from our destination I don't see how I could just overlook this. We have to keep investigating." I said, addressing the crowd that had gathered around us as much as the General himself. Then I turned back to face him.

"So where were you?"

"With me," piped up Daniels.

"We were in the crew quarters discussing preparations for the next stage of our journey."

"What? For how long?"

Coberg shrugged.

"Until half past I guess, we were both there 'till we ended up getting involved in that mess with the Cadet."

I'd been so sure of myself. I wanted to press him with more questions but I could see several of his officers in the crowd. I had to face facts, he had an alibi for the murder. Unless I revealed to the entire group that we had a traitor in our ranks I wasn't going to be able to pursue this any further. So far we'd always shied away from going public with the news. Bad enough I and a few of the other officers had to go day in day out knowing the enemy was among us. If we told everyone then maybe we'd stand a better chance at flushing out our unseen adversary. But it carried a far greater likelihood of getting somebody killed that had nothing to do with this whole mess.

"Sorry general, I just had to ask," I said trying to make out that it had just been routine.

After that, well ever since the murder actually my mind never left the topic of who our traitor might be. The General had given the order to fix the comms but had someone planted the idea in his head? I asked around to try and find out but there were many people in that conversation and none of them seemed to quite remember how the topic had come up. I focused on Coberg's remaining men, particularly the officers. Perhaps if one of them was staying close to him, manipulating him into doing things they wanted it might explain why I had made my earlier mistake. Any one of his officers had been with us in Vancouver from the beginning, had survived Reaper imprisonment just as Coberg had. Was one of them hiding in the shadow of the more obvious suspect?

As we trudged through the rain on the last leg of the journey I thought about each of them in turn. After awhile the names and faces started to blur together, none standing out as the likely cause. I felt my headache worsen and the faces seemed to mock me as I struggled to make sense of it. Talking to Xi Chan seemed to help, if only a little. As ever his analysis was both objective and insightful.

"We all know that Coberg's got his head stuck up his cloaca," he opened with after I had explained my doubts.

"But logically speaking he's no more likely to be the indoctrinated agent than many of the others here."

I raised my eyebrow at him but he shook his head firmly.

"Personal attitude irrelevant, anyone can be indoctrinated. Evidence against the General is circumstantial and shared with several others who were at Vancouver base."

"So what do you suggest?"

"Hmm can only suggest looking into personal history of suspects. May find indication of motive for attempting to frame Coberg."

I frowned.

"What makes you think so."

"Have noticed that the General's personality has proven highly efficient at generating tension."

"That's putting it mildly," I muttered but Xi carried on as if I hadn't interrupted.

"Indoctrination known to cause paranoia, exacerbate existing disagreements to generate conflict thus weakening enemy overall. Our agent may be acting out of dislike for Coberg,"

He paused a moment for effect before adding.

"Am aware this doesn't narrow field of suspects very much."

"Was that a joke?" I laughed in reply.

"Am very familiar with Earth humor Admiral. Have lived here since I was seven."

"I thought you first came to Earth to study engineering?" I asked the question before I could stop myself. Mentally cursing myself I quickly recalled that due to the Salarian race's relatively short lifespan, seven was the equivalent of early twenties to a human. Fortunately Xi didn't notice (or chose to ignore) the surprise in my voice.

"Yes, firstly Electrical Engineering at Greenwich University."

"And then Architectural Engineering in Moscow," I said, still puzzled at that particular switch of disciplines.

"Studying multiple degrees quite common in Salarian society. Had planned on returning to Sur'kesh personally of course but discovered interest in Earth Architecture while at Greenwich. Afterwards decided to stay awhile, travel the planet before going home."

"You're really interested in Earth aren't you?"

"Interested in many things. Earth fascinating melting pot of different ideas. As Professor Solus noted in 'A treatise on Sapient Cultures' Humans are a much more diverse species than most other races. You have experts and fools in almost every field of study."

"You read about many of Earth's 'fools'?"

"No species is perfect Admiral, always amusing to learn of past mistakes. Like watching bloopers," he chuckled.

"Was this Russian project we're heading to one of them?" I asked, curious to learn more about where we were going.

Xi Chan cocked his head to one side in a sort of pensive way.

"Not really amusing as such. President Sokolov's plans were ambitious in scope and surprisingly successful for a time. He hoped to succeed in fully utilizing eastern Russia where predecessors had failed. Worthy cause, undoubtedly vast areas of unused land in region. Atmospheric conditions... Problematic. Many similar attempts before him of course, Tsar Nicholas II possibly one of the most well known."

"You really enjoy learning all this stuff, don't you?"

"Salarian culture built around love of acquiring knowledge Admiral. Scientific, political, historical, it's all the same to us. In our history, the greatest heroes are always those that managed to uncover the most secrets."

"Sometimes I really don't know why people risk underestimating your people Xi," I commented. He gave a small shrug and smiled.

"Never see us coming."

When we reached our destination it was clear this was one settlement the Reapers hadn't ignored. In fact there was virtually nothing left. The houses were burnt out shells, the streets completely empty. The destruction had been systematic, every building, every road, every single piece of infrastructure was in ruins. It was looking very much like we'd come a very long way for nothing. Xi Chan however refused to be discouraged and led us over to the where the entrance should have been.

"Is this it?"

"I believe so Admiral, the station should be right below us."

Well it wasn't much, of the overground station only one wall still standing, bricks and mortar covering everything but it was a start. Took us three hours of digging just to uncover an entrance, another two to unblock it.

We descended into the dark cavernous space beneath the small town. The station itself was simple, not much more than a ticket vendor and a platform that stretched out into the darkness of an endless tunnel. And just as Xi Chan promised there was a train here, sort of. The Reapers hadn't overlooked this place either. Bullet holes peppered the sides of the train, there were clear signs of explosions singing the train and parts of the platform.

"We need this thing working," Coberg pointed out.

Xi Chan had been walking along the length of the train examining it critically.

"Damage isn't as bad as I feared, mostly superficial. They've gutted the on board generators but I came prepared for that. It'll take several hours but I can fix this thing up."

"So we're staying here for the night?" Asked Daniels.

"Looks like it," Coats replied.

As we settled in for the night Lara T'Ren approached me with several of her crew.

"May I speak with in private Admiral?"

"Sure, just step into my office," I said indicating a crumbling stone building that had once been a ticket office (at least I think so, it's getting harder to tell these days).

Ever blunt and to the point, once we were inside Lara immediately explained the purpose of her visit.

"I think you were right about the general. The question is how do we deal with this?"

I could feel my headache growing as I anticipated another difficult and potentially deadly issue arising. For a moment I could almost see visions of all the ways this could end badly. Lara getting frustrated with my unwillingness to to use violence and leaving to kill Coberg herself, sparking a small war within our ranks. Or me agreeing to support her and our collusion creating division in the group that the indoctrinated agent could exploit to their advantage. All these possibilities flooded across my vision but I pushed them aside to focus on the present. The reality was I had to make Lara be patient or it might only make things worse, for all of us.

"Are you alright Admiral?" Lara called out and I realized I still hadn't answered her question.

"Just tired, nothing to worry about. As for Coberg, I won't deny I had my concerns but he has an alibi for the murder, he can't be the culprit."

"And what about the other things that have gone wrong? The sabotaged shuttles, the ambush you told me about in Vancouver. He's a key figure related to every betrayal we've faced so far," she pointed out.

"I haven't forgotten about that. Been asking around the remaining survivors from the base but no one ever saw General Coberg go anywhere near the shuttle hanger. No one even remembers him mentioning it. The fact is everyone from the base has a connection to every issue we've seen so far."

"So that's it?"

"For now? Maybe. I got a lot of people's guards up asking about the base after all this time. It might be better to let the matter rest for awhile. Pick up the investigation again once everyone assumes we've given up."

"What if the indoctrinated agent tries something in the mean time?"

"Assuming Xi Chan gets the train working we'll be spending a fair amount of time underground. They'll be no communication with the outside world except the QEC device which will be carefully guarded. With no way to contact the Reapers and everyone on high alert at the moment I doubt they'll be able to do anything."

"Forgive me if I'm not completely reassured by that Admiral. I tend to put the safety of my crew ahead of political concerns."

"And since when was that a Justicar policy?" I asked.

"What?" she hissed at me, her face pale. I'd never seen her so angry before, for a moment I thought she was going to attack me.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"I've heard stories about the Justicar before. Are they honorable? Definitely. Do they protect the innocent? Whenever they can yes. But do they put lives of others even those they care about above defeating their enemies?"

I shook my head to indicate the answer and continued.

"The Justicar I was told about were ruthless. They understood that sometimes eliminating a threat will save more lives in the long run. They understand the bottom line."

"The code has many interpretations," she replied curtly.

"I don't think even you fully believe that any more," I sighed.

"You've been bending rules ever since you got to Earth, which doesn't exactly strike me as standard Justicar practice. You've allowed yourself to become attached to your crew in a way the Justicar order forbids."

"Do you have any idea how long I've been alone?" She snapped back, the words cutting into me like the lash of a whip.

"I've given the order three and a half centuries of my life only to see it all wasted-"

"It wasn't wasted-" I tried to interject but Lara's anger quickly squashed my interruption.

"Wasn't wasted? The whole galaxy is falling apart. The Reapers are trying to wipe out everyone I ever saved as a Justicar. So everything I did to become one, the work it took, the sacrifices I made, how does any of it mean anything?" The Justicar ranted, pouring her pent of anger and frustration into a tirade of shouting.

"And you of all people lecture me about this? I've seen the way you were with Will, with Daniels."

"I'm protective of my men," I said much more forcefully, my tone finally proving successful in getting through to the Asari. A good thing unquestionably but I wasn't sure why I was getting quite so defensive.

"Your men? Your sons would be closer to the mark!"

"I already have a son," I retorted angrily but deep down I felt guilty. She was right and I'd been blind not to see it myself. Now that I looked back at my interactions with Will, Daniels even Shepard for that matter it was obvious to me now. I'd been a father figure to each of them, keen to share my experiences as a soldier with them to watch them grow and avoid or overcome the same pitfalls I had faced in the job. And all the while my own son, my real son Jason neglected far too often.

I couldn't see the expression on my face but Lara's reaction gave me a fair guess.

"Anderson I didn't mean to- That is to say... I'm sorry. Will you tell the other Justicar when we meet them? About my crew I mean?"

I shook my head.

"It's not my place to get involved. And I apologize for what I said earlier, it was never my intention to judge you for your loyalty to your crew. I just worry how the rest of your comrades would react if they notice it when we all get to London."

She smiled briefly, gratitude clear to see on her face.

"Thank you, that means a lot to me. I'll have to face the other Justicars eventually but hopefully after the war, things may be different. Perhaps in the face of so much destruction my transgressions will be accepted," she said before adding a final warning.

"In the meantime I will support you in this plan Admiral at least for the time being. Just remember that I'll still be putting my crew first."

I sighed as she left, another problem I'd have to face. She'd supported me but made it clear that support wouldn't last forever. The Resistance was in danger of fracturing and if something happened here the results could be catastrophic. We may be just one cell of a much larger global resistance (what was left of it) but in our group all the factions that had come together to fight the Reapers were represented.

Coberg was officially leader of the North American Alliance's armed forces at this stage and well respected by other General's of various countries. Such militaries weren't huge now that internal wars on Earth had fallen into the past but they still represented a significant contribution. Lara was a Justicar and attacking one member of the order would represent an attack on them all. There weren't many Justicar's still left on Earth (there had been few enough to begin with) but their skills made them a significant fighting force. Even Xi Chan had a large following, mostly amount alien tourists who found themselves stranded on Earth by the invasion. He often spoke on the QEC of the honor of defending their host planet and its people even if some of them acted aggressively. His continued determination even after brutal treatment by Cerberus was often described as an inspiration.

The bottom line then: any conflict that started here might actually branch out to the entire resistance and tensions were certainly rising. In addition we had our resident indoctrinated agent to contend with not to mention the endless war to slow down the Reapers. Maybe that's why I did it. With everything getting so bad I didn't want to leave myself a way out.

I contacted Shepard at the Citadel using the QEC (Xi Chan had fixed up the comm platform in the station despite grumbling that it was delaying his repair schedule on the train). I heard he'd just got back from Rannoch, the Quarian homeworld. Apparently he'd managed to secure an alliance between their people and their age old enemies the Geth so that they could join the fight against the Reapers. I couldn't have been more proud, it was an amazing accomplishment but in the end I kept our meeting short.

I gave him my apartment on the Citadel. It was something I'd been considering doing for awhile actually. I haven't talked about this much but a lot of guys in the resistance talk about the possibility of being evacuated. Mostly it's just talk but some are serious and they try to look for any ship on the ground that might be space worthy. How they think they'll get past the blockade I couldn't say but if a man's desperate enough he'll try anything. I gave away my apartment to remind myself that my place is here. If things go well I'll stay on Earth after the war and help with the reconstruction, if things go badly I don't want there to be anywhere else in the galaxy for me to run to. And if it helps Shepard to have somewhere to relax on his shore leave (even in this hell everyone needs a break) then so much the better.

Anyway Xi Chan did finally have the train fixed by the morning and we all got aboard. That's where I am now, we've actually been traveling a couple of days already though little has happened. The train still isn't in very good shape, it did afterall take a lot of damage in the attack. Xi Chan's done his best but it's moving slower than it should be (although we don't know the exact speed because the instrument panel is completely smashed). The journey's going well all things considered but I am concerned about the foghorn noises coming from above us. It sounds as if we're directly underneath a Reaper. We just have to hope that-


	32. Log 28

Log 28

Date: 26ND NOV 2186

Location: PROBABLY STILL RUSSIA

How best to describe what happened after that abrupt ending to the last entry? Honestly it isn't easy even to remember it, everything happened so quickly.

I was aware of a burning red light flashing in front of my eyes and for several minutes afterwards I couldn't see anything but the bright afterglow burned into my vision. Like staring up at the sun but much, much closer, filling my entire field of vision.

As the Reaper beam sliced through the train it soon derailed but didn't stop. The sheer speed of the train kept it moving forward for a time, smashing against the walls of the tunnel like a snake caught in a metal pipe. What had felt just minutes earlier like a fairly lax pace now felt like hurtling through a rollacoaster with all the safeties off. Inside we clung to whatever we could to avoid being thrown about the carriages like rag-dolls.

Eventually the train did come to a rest, at least several hundreds meters from where we had been hit. I lay there for awhile, barely able to see in the darkness. As my eyes slowly adjusted I looked up to see Coberg already on his feet. He had a few cuts and bruises but otherwise looked okay, I'm sure I didn't look any better myself.

"What the hell happened?"

"Reaper ambush," I replied, stating the obvious as I got to my feet. I tried to think of something more useful to add but it was hard to focus. My mind was replaying those last few seconds of carnage over and over, trying to accept what happened.

"How did they find us?"

I groaned as the realization hit me.

"They must've worked out that there was only one place we could be headed after- well after what happened on the sub. I should've predicted this!"

"What other choice did we have? Hellman abandoned us all to freeze our arses off in the middle of bloody Russia! Last time I ask that man for a favour." Coberg frowned.

"In any case we need to get moving quickly. Xi Chan said most of the tunnel was out of range of their weapons. Hopefully we can get topside before we hit another exposed section."

"I doubt they'll risk firing again. Afterall we all know they want me alive," I said.

"Maybe but I'm not sure why they didn't just collapse the whole tunnel before we got here. Easiest way to trap us."

"Apart from what would've happened to me if we'd crashed straight into a blockage at that speed? I'm guessing the Reapers know that if I ever thought we were completely trapped, I'd put a bullet in my skull just to deny them the intel they want on Shepard."

"Would you?" Coberg raised an eyebrow to show he wasn't convinced.

'No' came the unexpected answer inside my head. This caught me by surprise, I've never hesitated before when I've known I might have to lay down my life in service to my duty. It was just a random thought though, I haven't really been feeling like myself lately. Most likely its just stress and lack of sleep.

"We're wasting time here that we don't have. We need to get moving before the Reapers can capitalize on this." I said out loud, indicating the smashed up carriage.

The General nodded.

"We should keep moving forward, I'll go up to the top of the train and arrange a scouting party to check out what's ahead of us."

"Alright, I'll head back the other way. Let everyone know what's going on and send them up towards you." I said and then pushed forward without another word.

Moving through the train proved to be a challenge in and of itself. When I came across a door to the next section it was always sealed shut, with no power left to get it open. I used my omniblade as a tool to wrench the doors apart like a crowbar. I thought it might also serve as a torch but the glaring red light it gave off was blinding, certainly it didn't help me see much more than I could without it.

As I progressed through the train I found many survivors, mostly suffering from injuries of some sort. The least injured were helping those more badly hurt but our replenished Medi gel supplies were running out again quickly. I knew we'd get through the last of them in this single event. As much as possible I urged everyone to head towards the front of the train and gather there.

Occasionally I'd come out into the open air of the tunnel where the train had been sliced in two by the Reaper beams. The other sections weren't in much better shape than our own. Usually I found them crashed into a wall not far from where they'd detached.

Another carriage then another, then another. I started to come across people heading the other way. Some claimed they'd heard gunshots and explosions from the back of the train. Others didn't stop at all just passed me by quickly without a word. I lend a hand where I could to help the wounded get through the doors and retreat before pushing on alone. There were no sounds of fighting now but I needed to know what was going on.

When I reached the last carriage I could see why we hadn't come under attack. Someone had had the sense to collapse the tunnel behind us. Given I could actually see half the corpse of a fallen Brute sticking out amid the rubble it was clear just how close we'd come to being overrun.

I didn't spot anyone in this carriage until Coats called out to me.

"Is that you sir? I need help with him, it's bad,"

I glanced over to the major crouching over someone who was laid out on a row of seats off to the side. I couldn't see much of the other man but what I could tell it didn't look like he was going to make it.

"Where's Daniels?" I asked. "I thought he was assigned to this position as well."

"Sir, this is Daniels," he replied.

I moved closer scarcely able to believe what I'd just been told. His face and hands were burned completely black along with most of his uniform. The only colour left was the flecks of blood all over his body. Out of his stomach protruded a piece of shrapnel, the blood staining the area was darker, more like black ink.

"What happened?"

"We came under attack not long after our carriage stopped. Cannibals and Marauders came pouring out a side tunnel. We tried to hold the position but there was too many of them. Daniels suggested we use the grenades to bring the roof down sir but one of them was thrown back right at his feet. His shields were still just about functioning otherwise he'd already be-"

"Don't-" I said my voice breaking. "Just don't."

The major was praising Daniels actions, saying he'd saved his life but the words barely registered. I knelt down beside him and took over applying pressure to the wound. His breathing was weak, I could well remember just how many of my comrades I seen die from similar injuries. Part of me knew he was most likely going to die. Worse still the Reapers would clear the blockage soon enough and we'd be under attack again. Strategically it would have been safer to leave him.

But he was so young to die like this, cold and alone in this horrible place. He was a grown man of course but still no older than my son and he had been with me in this nightmare since the beginning. I would not abandon him today so instead I sent Coats back to the front of the train with orders that if the Reapers came again they should collapse the tunnel and leave without us.

And I meant it, it's how I've been feeling from time to time. Not all the time of course, I try my best to keep my spirits up and leave the only sign of my fears in this journal but I am tired. Tired of the war, tired of losing people, tired of trying to maintain this pretense of confidence and hope. With my mask on people see me as optimistic, jovial even given the circumstances but every day it gets harder to maintain.

I said some of this to Daniels while I sat with him and he slipped in and out of consciousness. Hell I talked about anything I could just to fill the silence, to cover the scrapping noises I could hear on the other side of the tunnel collapse. Kahlee, the war and the strategies I still had left, some of the amusing tidbits Jason had shared with me about work. In my darkest moments I talked about the Reapers. Raged about them asking the same question over and over. Why were they doing this to us? What was it all actually for?

It felt like we spent hours there, crouching in the darkness. Eventually I couldn't think of anything more to say so I simply sat there in silence while the noise from the other side of the blockage grew steadily louder. Sooner or later the Reapers would succeed in tunneling through. I was just contemplating trying to carry Daniels through to the next carriage when Coberg and Xi Chan arrived.

"What're you still doing back here?"

I didn't speak just nodded towards Daniels.

"The kid's still alive? This isn't exactly the best time to be playing the hero Admiral, we've got bigger problems right now."

Again I didn't bother to respond. If Coberg didn't understand why I'd chosen to stay I didn't see much value in trying to explain.

"Coats told us what happened and we came as soon as we could," Xi Chan explained helpfully.

"I saved a batch of Medi gel. Our last one actually."

Well that did far more to get my attention. I hurried out of the way and ordered him to administer the Medi gel. As usual the gel did its work flawlessly, quickly surrounding the wound to form a perfect seal. The shrapnel was expelled from his body replaced with gel that would stop the bleeding completely for the time being. Within a few moments Daniels eyes flicked open and he seemed more alert for the first time.

Not for the first time did I find myself marveling at the miracles the substance was able to achieve but at the same time (and for much the same reason) I mourned the loss of our last supply. Without any left and with no means to resupply in the near future there would be no more miracles like this one.

"Can we move him?"

"I'm not a doctor but I'd say it'd be safer than leaving him here."

"Come on then."

"We need to get moving, the Reapers will be coming."

"Agreed but before we do there's just one more thing."

"What's that?"

I turned at looked at Coberg directly.

"How many explosives do we have left?"

About half an hour later our group was starting the long march westward down the tunnel. In truth there wasn't any choice, we'd used the majority of our remaining explosives to more thoroughly seal the tunnel behind us. As for our journey we unfortunately don't actually know how much further we need to go. We know the train was running slower than it should have been or we would have arrived already. But since we don't know how fast we were actually traveling its hard to make any accurate predictions regarding our position. Xi Chan's best estimates put us anywhere between St. Petersburg and 500 klicks back from that in the Krasnogorsky District.

If we're as far back as that our food reserves will be starting to struggle. It shouldn't be a problem, we should be able to make it to the next station but I'd be cautious about pushing our reserve too much further than that. So far the only good news is that the tunnel is going downhill so the odds are we'll be deep enough that the Reaper ships can't hit us again like they did the train (it was only ever a risk on stretches that ran closer to the surface). That's the hope at least and so far it's working but the Reapers must know we're here by now. I'm told there are several intersecting tunnels in this area as the line branches out towards other major cities in Russia and beyond in Europe. With any luck it'll take the Reapers some time to locate us in this underground maze. It's not a question of if they'll find us only when and if we'll be ready for them when they do.

In fact it was actually only four days of marching (roughly four days in any case it's getting harder to tell) before we came across the next station. Though once we saw it up close there were one or two issues.

"It's blocked!"

"What's that?" I called out.

Coats came running back down the tunnel clearly looking frustrated.

"Half the station ceiling has caved in sir, I can't see a way out."

I cursed repeatedly and lead a group to investigate more thoroughly. When we arrived I could see what the Major had meant. The station opened up onto a wide platform with tunnels that branched away many of which were now blocked by debris.

"Spread out and search the area," I called out. In the dark space lit only by torchlight it would've been easy enough to miss a way out. I hoped a more methodical search might reveal some way out of here.

We took a few teams and headed into the concrete and brick maze. Most of the group were left out on the platform just in case there actually was a route up to the surface. Afterall a route up would also mean a route down, better to keep most of our people out in the open away from any potential ambushes.

Coberg, Xi, Lara and Coats went scouting through the various tunnels. I held back, carefully checking the rest of the platform, checking every kiosk and shop. Not much there, very little of this station was even finished being built by the time the project was abandoned. It was sad in a way, walking around this forgotten piece of Earth history. Only now standing in its ruins did I appreciate what a massive undertaking this would have been back then. You could almost see the dreams that had gone into building this place. But I was a visitor from the distant future, someone who already knew that this dream was doomed to failure.

Still if there's anything I've learned from being stuck on Earth all this time it's just how much is going on here that we overlook. I've always looked outwardly, to the rest of the galaxy for exploration. My interest in exploring might sound odd given I joined the army but despite being a soldier I've always had a keen interest in trying to understand other cultures. Maybe it even enhances it in some ways, I've learned to respect the Turians more than any other species yet they were a bitter enemy during the first contact war. I guess it was only by fighting them that I was able to see their strengths and gain a desire to learn from them.

Anyway getting back to the point I was about to make, these past few months have shown me just how much I never knew about my own world. Not seeing what was right under my nose I suppose, especially when it comes to the bases hidden under Vancouver. I wonder how much more lost history and forgotten places exist here. If by some miracle I survive the war maybe I'll write a book about it, once I've done what I can for the reconstruction.

I realized I gotten badly off track and forced myself to focus on the task at hand. Finally I located what I'd been looking for, a main reception of some sort. There wasn't much to see unfortunately, far as I could tell it was abandoned half finished, though the roof collapse didn't help either. No maps or signs that might confirm where we were that I could see. A single graffiti scrawled on one of the walls read "Welcome to Hel-" (the rest was hidden by debris). Well I hardly needed to be told I was in hell. To learn any more I'd need some teams to help clear the debris.

I headed back outside and saw some of the other teams returning from their exploration.

"Did you find anything?" I called out.

"All the exits are blocked but we might be able to tunnel our way out. The Asari stayed behind to start working on it, any luck down here?" Coberg replied.

"About the same really. I found some kind of reception room back here half buried but it might tell us where we are if we can get it cleared."

"Couldn't hurt to find out what to expect up there I guess. Did you learn anything Xi?"

"Not much. But I thought you might like to know the damage here looks natural, far as I can tell they were caused over time by structural weakness."

"So not a Reaper attack?"

"Precisely, just time and the station not being finished."

"Well it's good to know the Reapers are less likely to be waiting outside. Still someone should probably warn Lara to go carefully, we wouldn't want her biotics bringing the roof down."

"Good idea."

Coberg lead the way back to where Lara was but we'd barely set off before we started hearing weapons fire ahead of us.

"Now what?" I muttered as we broke into a run only to find Lara and the rest of her team heading back the other way pursued by Husks.

"I'm guessing you managed to break through the blockage then?" I asked as we cut down the nearest attackers with assault rifles.

"Harbinger's not far behind, we need to move," she called back.

"I thought he- it, whatever was still in London?"

"Oh you know what I mean. One of his puppets is up there, with an army. I think they may have recognized me."

I swore as I spotted a Ravager coming down the corridor, the firepower of its cannons soon sending us into a hasty retreat.

"Goddammit!" I shouted and stabbed a husk in the throat as it got too close. It fell to the ground screeching, dragging my knife with it but there were many, many more on their way.

"Do we have any options here? Anyone?"

"We could bring down the whole station, block them from reaching us," suggested Xi Chan.

"What with, we used up our explosives the last time we tried that trick," I reminded him.

"No to mention we'd be left trapped down here. Again." Coberg pointed out as he took out another Husk with a shotgun blast.

"I don't think we have many alternatives left Admiral," Lara pointed out.

As we'd been talking we'd been in full retreat, swiftly falling back to the main platform where the bulk of our forces were still waiting. As we approached I bellowed out an order and we threw ourselves to the ground so that our people could target our pursuers. The Reaper forced were met by a hailstorm of incoming fire that flattened the Husks and drove back the Ravager. We'd bought ourselves a reprieve but only a brief one.

"Xi do whatever you have to to stop them, everyone else get off the platform and back into the tunnel."

"Lara I need your biotics. Target the columns I point out to you."

That really got everyone moving, afterall what do you get when you put a Salarian engineers ingenuity and a Justicar's biotic power together? Well to put it simply we were luckily to get away in time ourselves. As for the Reapers? They never stood a chance. The entire ceiling collapsed around the platform and the ground shook like we were in the middle of an earthquake. For awhile I was worried that the tunnel would collapse as well burying us all alive but eventually the shaking stopped and silence fell in the darkness.

And that where we are now more or less. I'm leaving another copy of this journal here just in case this is where we reach the end of the line. Hopefully it will get lost in this forgotten corner of the planet and not be found again until it's unearthed by the next cycle. If that's what happens and you're reading this in the future, well I hope it helps. As for us the story is simple. We're running out of supplies, we're not sure when or if we'll reach the next station or what we might face when we get there. We know that Harbinger is aware of us now, we are being hunted.

If these are the last words in this journal know that we died fighting these monsters to the last man, to our final breath.


	33. Log 29

Log 29

Date: 14TH DEC 2186

Location: OSLO, NORWAY

Well I'm alive. Alone now but still alive for the time being though I can see Reaper footsoldiers patrolling the streets below. I don't know where the rest of the Resistance is right now but I'm sure they'll be alright. Their strength is the only thing that got us through the darkness but proud as I am I'm tired of the Reapers always smashing us apart. If I ever make it to London I swear I'm going to find some way to make Harbinger pay.

When last I wrote Harbinger had just caught our trail and was pursuing us through the tunnels. Collapsing the station had bought us time but not much of it. I dictated that last entry while on the run, truthfully I thought I was recording my final words. We kept that pace for three hours but eventually we had to stop and take a rest. We hadn't seen any sign of pursuit through the tunnels (yet) but we could hear the foghorn blasts of the Destroyers and Capital ships above us.

We pressed on as soon as we could, pushing ourselves and those under our command but there was no way to get ahead of the Reapers this time. They were so close now that they could've used their weapons to burn their way into the tunnel if they weren't so concerned with keeping me alive. They still want my knowledge about Commander Shepard and they probably also wanted to capture Lara so they could force her to tell them where to find the rest of the Justicar on Earth.

In many ways it's ironic, the pair of us were responsible for drawing the Reapers attention to the group and yet our presence was the only thing preventing them from vaporizing us. I briefly toyed with the idea of trying to make a deal of some sort with them. Afterall I still doubt that what I know will be of much use to the Reapers even if they don't realize it. I could try to trade the information for a way out for my men but the problems would be insurmountable.

The Reapers don't respect us, don't consider us a threat of any kind. The first of their kind we ever encountered, Sovereign called us 'Rudimentary creatures of blood and flesh' and as far as I can tell nothing we've done since has changed their minds. Attempting to approach them to make a deal would be an invitation to attack. Given their vastly superior capabilities, direct assault will always their preferred means of attaining their goals. As Shepard himself said at the start of the war 'We fight or we die'. In this struggle there are no other options.

So we press on, day after day in the darkness, barely sleeping, eating as little as possible in an effort to preserve our precious supplies. Frustratingly our increased pace doesn't seem to be getting us any closer to the next station. Xi Chan keeps trying to assure us that the St. Petersburg one must be coming up soon but it's a line many are getting tired of hearing. In truth if Xi's calculations were correct we should have reached by now. Most likely it was in fact the station we buried under rubble but we can't be certain.

Every day we saw the fear growing among the group. Not of the enemy but of being trapped down here, of dying before we ever get to see the sun again. The officers continue to perform admirably, doing everything they can to boost morale but it's ineffective now. You can tell a soldier that you have a plan to beat a dangerous enemy but you can't convince them that the food won't run out. Usually I don't lie to those under my command unless ordered to, now I can hardly stop the lies spilling from my mouth every time I hear them voicing their concerns. I'm not happy about it but nothing good can come of telling them just how bad it really is.

Every one of us has grown to hate the tunnel. It's always hatefully cold down here which dampens our spirits considerably. We've found that some sections are partially flooded so that we're left walking for hours in ankle deep water (when planning this trip I didn't anticipate trench foot becoming a concern). Even with the torches we have available the darkness is everywhere, playing tricks on our eyes and our minds. The side tunnels that branch away from the main passage look like black pits, impossible to see into until you're close. We're constantly on high alert for ambushes that might come out of the shadows.

Sleep is usually the hardest part of our days here. Most members of the group have experienced at least a few nightmares during our time down here. There's something raw and primal about the fear this place generates and at night our imaginations run wild with it in vivid, terrifying detail. I've dreamt of battles that never took place, of being ambushed in these tunnels by monsters that shift constantly taking many grotesque forms. I've watched people I care for be ripped apart in front of my eyes; Daniels, Lara, Xi Chan and even people who aren't on earth like Kahlee or Jason. Our nightmares match our reality so closely now that its almost becoming difficult to remember which is which. As the days become weeks it all starts to blur together and I have to concentrate to remember which parts are real.

In an odd way the only reprieve we now have from fear is the enemy. We've come across scouts and small checkpoints held by Reaper forces. Far as we could tell these troops were already here before we arrived in this godforsaken place. A low level presence to keep an eye on the area in other words. Certainly nothing in comparison to what we were soon likely to find lying in wait for us. But these small battles distract our troops from the more serious issues. On the sixth day the only smiles I saw were while celebrating the defeat of a particularly large checkpoint. I didn't see any after that, the Reapers were starting to rack up casualties.

At first the shift in tactics was unnoticeable. We still came across isolated units but now they were acting aggressively, laying traps, preparing ambushes. The attacks were never aimed at Lara or myself but the rest of the group were fair game. It was hard to say what or who might be behind the new approach but my guess was Harbinger. It seemed it was directing a sustained campaign designed to break us, to make it easier to capture me. In the next few days several members of the resistance received injuries. Then the day came when we started losing people to the tunnels.

It was the morning of the fifteenth day of our trek when they hit us again. I was marching near the front with Xi Chan, his team and Daniels (he was recovered enough to walk but still vulnerable as was proven the day before when two Husks jumped him out of the shadows. I managed to pull them off him but not before they caused even more damage).

"So then my other cousin was still lobbying to get onto the research team to Heshtok-" Xi Chan was saying. He was telling one of many stories he had from his extended family to try and lighten the mood. I was trying to pay attention but Xi seemed to have so many cousins I couldn't really keep up, also not helping was this strange tapping sound I couldn't quite place.

"Hang on, didn't you say she was the one that accidentally pressed the release hatch on the containment module of a captive Yahg?"

"No, no that was my cousin Shena and it was really wasn't her fault she was bumped into by a very rude-"

"Quiet," I called out. "I can hear something."

The tapping had indeed gotten louder and more repetitive. Like several things banging against the metal rails in quick succession. I scanned down the passageway with my torch but saw nothing approaching. I spotted a side tunnel and checked it out but it too was devoid of any activity. I stepped inside and scrutinized it more closely looking for anything that could explain it. The sound of a scream brought me racing back to the main tunnel.

When I arrived the creatures were already everywhere, in amongst our people, hacking, stabbing and biting. I couldn't tell what they were, the darkness hid their features but they fought with a savagery I'd never seen before. I heard a shriek from above and saw one of them clinging to the roof of the tunnel. It seemed able to hang there just like a fly on the wall but this one wasn't waiting around for long. It hissed and leapt down on top of me.

It landed on my back, knocking me to the ground. My torch broke as I fell and left us in total darkness with it's weight on top of me. It was lighter than I would've expected and as I rolled over throwing it off my back I caught my first proper glimpse of it. I activated my omniblade which threw a dull red light over the creature.

My first reaction was that it looked like a demon. Oh the red light didn't help obviously but then neither did the claws or the grinning maw of pointed teeth. It was skinnier than I had expected, instead of muscle it had a wiry sinews that gave it strength. It snarled like an angry dog and threw itself at me once again. Desperately I put my blade between us and blocked its slashing claws before it could cut me to shreds. With my free hand I pulled out my pistol and tried to shoot it but it darted away too quickly, jumping onto the walls, the ceiling, other people even in its efforts to stay ahead of me.

I stood up for a moment trying to get a clear shot but was quickly knocked down again by the chaos around me as resistance members tried to fight off these crazed assailants. Within seconds I found myself in the same predicament as I was jumped by another one of them.

This time we fought at close quarters, it trying to claw my eyes out, me with my hand around its throat hoping it could actually be suffocated. I groaned in pain as the creature sunk a set of claws into my shoulder but it gave me the opening I needed to drive my blade into its bony chest. It screamed in my face and struggled even more fiercely (if that's even possible) but a few more stabs put an end to it.

I lay there briefly dazed before taking a quick stock check. I was hurt but not critically (though who knows how long that would last if I had to go a few more rounds with the living blender), I still had plenty of ammo left not that it was going to be any use right now. Oh and my shields were still at 100% I noted with amusement. As they were only designed to active to deflect high speed projectiles or directed energy weapons they weren't even scratched by the claws. Of course that did mean they wouldn't be depleting anyone else's shields either...

An idea suddenly came to mind. It was crazy, reckless, even bordering on insane but if the alternative was this nightmarish battle I was all for it.

"Grenades!" I called out before tossing several into the nearby area. Those around me (that weren't currently fighting for their lives) looked at me as if I'd gone nuts but one or two understood and followed my example (or they were just blindly following orders).

"Shields everyone!" I called out.

"I don't have any!" Came a terrified call from nearby.

Horrified I turned see Cadet Smith standing with her back against the tunnel wall with three of the creatures surrounding her.

Without thinking I charged straight towards her. Something leapt at me as I ran but a vicious backhanded swing from my omniblade knocked it flying. I reached the girl just as the first of the explosives was going off, tackling her to the ground so that she was protected beneath my shields. Explosions thundered around us and rocked the tunnel as we lay there, hugging the tunnel floor and waiting for it to end.

In the end my 'plan' worked much as I'd hoped it would. I'd guessed correctly that the creatures, like Husks didn't have personal shields so wouldn't have any protection against (or means of dodging) the explosions. Whereas our side's shields weren't affected by their efforts to rip us to pieces and at full strength they would be able to cope with the explosive force of a grenade.

After it was over few of the creatures still remained alive and many of those still standing were badly wounded. The rest quickly fell to our superior numbers. In an odd way I started to feel sorry for them as they were surrounded and kicked to death by an angry mob. Obviously it had to be done, they were Reaper troops and would keep attacking until they were stopped. And you could scarcely blame our side for their anger and frustration after more than two weeks trapped underground. Still I took no part in the killings and my own feeling once it was done was one of relief. Maybe it was just the one-sidedness of the fight, the lack of dignity for what had presumably once been people.

To try and find out what kind of people I took Xi Chan to one side to examine one of the creatures.

"Remind you of anything?" I asked.

"Actually they do seem rather familiar," he replied surprising me.

"Hard to imagine what the Reapers did to these poor souls to leave them looking like this."

"Actually I don't believe their appearance was altered too radically."

"What?" Even in the brighter torchlight it really did look like a demon. At first I couldn't imagine what Xi was getting at but then I caught on.

"The Vorcha?"

"It appears so, Admiral."

"Things must be going worse on Heshtok than the Alliance last told us about." I reasoned.

"Mind you that was over two weeks ago now, who knows how bad things have gotten in the meantime? We have to get out of this tunnel Xi."

"I've had a thought about that. We can discuss it in a moment but first things first, what're we gunna call these ones?" he said trying to lighten the mood.

"Harbinger's newest pets?" I couldn't say exactly why I blamed Harbinger for this latest nightmare but I felt sure he was responsible.

"They were sent to hunt us down so how about the Hunters?"

"No," I replied. What was it the Reapers had said when they first revealed their existence? 'I am the Vanguard of your destruction'.

"We'll call them Vanguard, to remind us that they're just the first wave of whatever Harbinger has planned for us."

Later Xi Chan discussed his suspicions with me and the rest of the senior members of the Resistance. It was the first time I'd felt hope in a long time. We had lost people that day, five in total to the Vanguard but if Xi was correct this time then we were actually much further ahead than we'd ever realized. According to him we must have gone straight past St Petersburg on the train. Which would make the station we were forced to collapse Helsinki (yeah whatever you thought when I saw the sign 'Hel' and overlooked it was what got said at the meeting).

Of course simply knowing that we had almost reached our destination still presented another issue for us. We knew for certain Harbinger would be waiting for us at the next station with an army. Most likely it's plan had always been to wear us down slowly in the tunnels and then ambush us at the end of our journey. We argued over different options for several hours while we marched but in the end there was only one option. I certainly wasn't happy about it but with our food reserves about to dry up completely we had no choice. So, step one? Charge.

Now it would be a waiting game to know exactly when that would happen. Two more days passed both without incident and without seeing any sign of our destination. It wasn't until the day after, the day Xi Chan had predicted we would arrive that things started to happen. On that morning we entered an area that marked the approach of the station. Maintenance tunnels intersected the main line at several points creating a honeycomb of hiding places.

As we moved through that area we could sense the crowd getting agitated. They knew enough from our briefings to spot the signs that we were almost out, they anticipated ambushes from every side tunnel, they knew what we might face at the station. A mixture of excitement, fear and dread gripped the whole group on the final leg of our journey.

I couldn't really tell you when or why people started running. As the morning wore on I noticed people were increasing their pace and soon I was jogging to keep up. I guess it was just instinct, the way prey seems to automatically know when there's a predator in the area. As we picked up speed a Husk burst into view from one of the adjoining tunnels and charged at us. I gunned it down with a single shotgun blast but moments later a second, then a third, then a forth emerged.

It was the same story throughout our convoy, Husks and Vanguard began emerging from every tunnel, throwing themselves at us from all sides. We gunned them down but their ranks were replenished as quickly as we could destroy them. Worse yet, the tunnel in front of us was being filled by still more of them. Our defenders too busy warding the sides to prevent the build up ahead.

Still we kept charging, straight into their waiting ranks. I was at the front dealing with the brunt of the first wave. I gunned one down easily then used my omniblade to stab a second in the throat before a third dived at me. The force of it almost knocked me down (if I had fallen I'd have been finished as the group raced on, leaving me trapped with the horde surrounding us.) but I managed to grab its neck and rip the thing off me. I'll admit to a certain satisfaction when I threw it to the ground and stomped on its head.

The Husks were falling easily but the Vanguard were another story entirely. Moving quickly helped negate their advantage somewhat but only the Asari seemed to be able to really stop them. Their biotics could leave them floating in the air, helpless and immobile. I saw Lara do that to five Vanguard with a wave of her hand then move through them, a pistol in each hand. She shot them all down and three on the ground in the blink of an eye. A Husk swung at her but she rolled underneath and came back up with a swift shot to the back of its head.

But the more progress we made the harder things got for us, there were more side tunnels as we closed on the station but far worse was what lay ahead. The tunnel was widening and now in front of us we saw at least six or seven Brutes waiting for us.

"Theirs but to do or die," I muttered to myself but outwardly I yelled

"Let's take them!"

Luckily the Brutes size meant that for the first time the troops at the center of our group had a target they could easily hit. As we closed with them every gun available poured fire against these giants. Shotgun blasts aimed for their legs trying to bring them down, snipers went for the eyes if they could and assault rifle fire fell like rain across their entire bodies.

As we drew close it turn to blade work, trying to use our smaller size to evade their attacks long enough to deliver a damaging blow. A technique Daniels demonstrated perfectly as he ducked under one of the swinging arms and neatly stabbed a Brute in the throat before nimbly stepping aside as it fell. The rest of of were slightly less flashy (don't get me wrong I'm very proud of Daniels), hacking at their legs as we passed to bring them down so those behind us could finish them off.

As we charged through we acted like a single well drilled unit, covering each others backs. When a Vanguard landed on Daniels back, knocking him to the ground Coats blew it away with a shotgun blast and helped him to his feet. When I was trapped against a wall by an onrushing Brute Lara blasted it back with biotics giving me a chance to finish it. We protected each other wherever we could, watched each others backs but while the speed and ferocity of our assault got many of us through I knew there were many who weren't being so lucky. We fought to save every soul we could but still our losses were mounting.

Finally we saw the station stretching out in front of us and it was everything we feared. The platform was bristling with Cannibals and Marauders with assault rifles all aimed at us. Behind them a line of Ravagers with their cannons at the ready and behind that Harbinger's latest puppet, surrounded by more of those Asari creatures. And between us and all of that, the disorganized mass of Husks, Vanguard and Brutes we hadn't killed yet. A complete army of all Reaper units, replete with it's own general and his bodyguards.

Onwards we charged, undaunted by the numbers of our enemy, firing every step of the way. Those on the tracks we cut down easily, disorganized and disorientated as they had become in the fighting thus far. But far greater damage was done to their ranks by their own side. So great was their desire to crush us the Reaper forces on the platform opened fire on everyone still below, paying no mind to the Reaper units slaughtered in their efforts to kill us.

Still we charged into the station, our shields buckling and burning under the hailstorm of incoming fire. So great was our haste that many Husks went unharmed as we tore past towards the platform. The first of us to reach it surged up the ramps but our numbers were too great, the ramps filled with soldiers trying to force their way through the enemy line, bogged down in hand to hand fighting.

I ran to the platform edge and grabbed a Marauder by the leg, hauling him down to the tracks. Others followed my example and soon the Reapers were forced to fall back out of reach, offering us a slight reprieve. A grenade landed at our feet but Coberg snatched it up and threw it straight back. Using the platform as cover we maintained limited fire with the Marauders, stopping them from advancing.

Our biggest issue now was the Ravagers, they weren't able to hit those of us hidden behind the platform but once they maneuvered into position those on the ramps would soon be at the mercy of their cannons. We'd already lost a lot of good people, if we were forced from the ramps it was unlikely we'd have the strength for another assault. It didn't help that we'd left Husks alive in the haste of our charge either. At one point I was so focused on the battle ahead I only realized I was about to be jumped when Coats blew the head off a Husk that was about three feet behind me.

At that moment Lara and her fellow Asari chose to act, demonstrating just how much she'd really taught them over the past months. Using biotics they launched themselves into the air, high above the battlefield. For a moment they hung there and quite absurdly for a moment I found myself thinking of synchronized divers (they really did have that poise and grace). A moment later they unleashed a wave of biotic strikes across the ranks of the Ravagers, blowing them apart. Damage done, they landed on the far side of the platform and cut off from the rest of us ran to the nearby buildings for cover.

Several units peeled off from the bulk of the army to charge the Justicar's position but Harbinger angrily (can Reapers get angry?) ordered them back into position with a sweep of its hand. Instead he gave a signal to his bodyguards to move in. At first nothing happened and it seemed they'd ignored Harbinger's order but then there was a sudden flash and they were twenty meters closer to their target. Another flash took them even closer and as the frequency increased they were soon rapidly closing on Lara. I was taken aback by their speed but Lara quickly rallied her troops and sent a biotic barrage back at these new horrors. But the attacks only glanced off their biotic barriers and still they kept on coming. As one of them shrieked (a sound that almost drove me to my knees it was so piecing) I saw Lara showing doubt for the first time.

I looked around aghast at the the scene of carnage in front of me. Our original plan, to quickly break through the enemy lines and flee into the city, was falling apart. Now all our forces were bogged down in close quarters fighting barely able to move forward at all. The resistance was fighting well but I could already see it was hopeless. Harbinger would call in more reinforcements soon enough a finish us off completely. To give us even a hope of surviving I had to act, in fact I had to do something completely crazy.

Acting before I had a chance to doubt my plan I quickly climbed onto the platform, scrambled to my feet and charged the enemy head on. One man alone against roughly a hundred Cannibals dead ahead and god knows how many more elsewhere. It felt like suicide, making that run but there was method in my madness.

As I charged no shots were fired and at first no one tried to stop me. The Reaper units didn't know how to react, afterall my shields were down and they had orders not to kill me. I made it through their lines (having shot afew to make a hole big enough). Now the troops on the ramp were peeling away in droves, focused on cutting me off from the main group.

The resistance was quick to take advantage, pushing forward into the gaps left by Reapers too busy chasing me. As their ranks thinned they lost the momentum of the battle and control of several ramps where they had bottle necked our forces. Where a few moments ago it had looked hopeless now the Reaper army was being rapidly swept aside opening gaps that allowed several of our people to make their escape in the chaos.

That had always been our plan from the beginning, to break out of whatever trap Harbinger had waiting for us and scatter into the city beyond. No matter how many resources he had pulled to aid his hunt we doubted he'd be able to track hundreds of different groups all at once. Once we broke out no one was to stop or try and rejoin the others until they'd made it to London.

A good plan in theory but it looked like I might not be able to join them. The area around me was now more filled with Reaper forces than anywhere else in the station. I backed up as much as I could, still firing at the Reapers but in truth my efforts were barely making a difference, I took down several of them but their advanced continued heedlessly.

Harbinger strode towards the front of the crowd as they closed on all sides. His strategy had ultimately succeeded, the rest of the Resistance be damned, he finally had me cornered.

"You are required. Surrender to our power."

I was conflicted, maybe if I surrendered the Reapers would agree to give my men an extra day to escape?

"I-"

I got no further than that. Biotic explosions ripped the center of their lines apart. I saw Harbinger tossed aside like a ragdoll. With no desire to follow him I rushed through the opening towards Lara's group waiting on the other side.

"Thanks,"

"It's him you should be thanking," Lara replied. I looked to where she was indicating and saw Daniels. He was wounded again, an Asari had to stay with him to help him remain standing.

"He killed those wailing monsters, gave us a chance to come back you up."

"We need to get out of here now."

Lara shook her head in disagreement.

"You go, we'll cover the retreat as best we can."

I rushed over to Daniels side.

"Let me take him."

The Asari nodded and draped his arm round my neck so I could support him. We set off as fast as we could, it wasn't easy moving quickly with Daniels in tow but the Justicar managed to keep any Reapers from pursuing us. The last I saw of them they were slowly falling back, using massive biotic blasts to keep the enemy from regrouping.

It was chaos outside with Resistance fighters fleeing in all directions. There were more Reaper forces outside but it seemed that for once they had underestimated our determination to break free. They still had drones and Harvesters in the sky but no Capitol ships or Destroyers in place to track us properly. Our people broke into separate squads to make their way severally to London. With each individual group being so small that the Reapers lost track of them almost the moment they dropped out of sight.

As for myself and Daniels? Well we made it to a house a few blocks away from the station. We're there right now, hiding in the attic. Last time I checked there was a Marauder and six Cannibals in the street below. Daniels is in a bad way again; those screaming harpies had claws that could punch straight through armor plating. I've done what I can for him for the time being.

No sign of any of the others, though I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing. We heard sounds of gunfire about an hour ago, not sure if it was the resistance or locals. Whoever they were I hope they managed to get away. Tomorrow I try to find a way back to London. Wish me luck.


	34. Log 30

Log 30

Date: 18TH DEC 2186

Location: NORTH SEA

So there I was, hiding in the attic of a house in Oslo. Alone but for a single wounded soldier. Somewhere in the city I knew Harbinger would be leading a hunt for me and any Marauder that saw me would become his puppet. As far as the Reapers were concerned I had the most recognizable face on the planet.

Our goal still remained the same, we needed to reach London where we would rendezvous with all the surviving members of the Resistance. I knew that many, many more of us had escaped the ambush at the station but attempting to contact them would be far too risky (frankly I was the last person you'd want with you given the circumstances). Each group would have to make their way to London separately, all I could do was wish the others luck.

The original plan (prior to us being dumped miles away from the station in Russia and then the train blowing up) was to meet up with the Norwegian resistance cell in this city who had assured us they had a means of getting us into the UK. According to their orders they would have left the city themselves at least a week ago in order to make the rendezvous (all resistance plans include strict instructions on how to precede in the event that a contact is late. After twelve hours assume death and if appropriate attempt to complete their mission yourselves).

However there was still a chance that their base hadn't yet been compromised. Most of the resistance wouldn't know where to find it but luckily I had helped advise them on the location after their previous base in Akershus Castle was discovered and demolished by Reaper forces. Given that was the case going there would be unlikely to put any any of the other groups at risk. The base offered at best a clue as to how the resistance had planned to get us into the UK, at worst a secure place to hide while we planned our next move.

The replacement base was in fact situated in the Stjernehop Operahus (an Opera house apparently). Such buildings were often used by the resistance as they went largely ignored by the Reapers who focused on destroying utilities, infrastructure and capturing population centers. Entertainment buildings generally were usually the last to be hit, a small but important advantage for us.

We did our best to make our way through towards the base. Progress was slowed down by the Reaper forces on every street corner. Frustratingly from what I'd seen so far of Oslo it's a very open plan city. Wide open roads, not too many tight corners or convenient places to hide (at least as far as I could see). We darted from building to building mostly, using them as cover.

In many ways it reminded me of that first day I had of this hell (God that feels like it was years ago now). Me, Daniels and Hetford ducking through the streets of Vancouver, trying to keep out of the Reaper's way. Daniels is even wounded again, though this time it's not from a Gunship crash but from fighting those Asari Reaper things (need to think up a better name for them, Shriekers maybe?). Anyway those Shriekers (I'm sticking with the name) have cut him up pretty bad. He got several stab wounds for his trouble after taking them on.

In truth he's never been quite right since the incident on the train. His injuries slowly healed (though you can still see some burn marks on his face and neck) but he's been quieter and more withdrawn. I got used to having him constantly at my elbow, eager for orders. Since that day on the train he's continued to do his duty to the letter but otherwise he's kept to himself. Even used duty as an excuse to avoid the rest of us at times.

"How're you holding up over there?" I'd ask him.

"Quiet sir, I think I hear someone coming," the reply came back. There never was anyone coming but I chose not to call him on it. He was right to be cautious, in fact I wondered if my concern for the boy wasn't allowing my own professionalism to slip.

In the end it took us the best part of a day to reach the base (most of it spent hiding in buildings while Reapers stalked the streets below). No sign of Reaper forces inside, no sign of resistance members either. We navigated our way through the main hall (took a while, a Reaper pot shot had caved in half the ceiling) and made our way to the basement.

There we started to see more signs that we had in fact come to the right place. Mostly noticeably the two dead Husks nailed to the wall outside the entrance to the underground complex. I sighed, war trophies weren't something I'd ever endorsed in the Vancouver resistance cell but sooner or later soldiers always find some way of keeping score. It wasn't long before they started to forget Husks had ever been human.

We left the ghoulish display behind us for the time being and entered the complex. Before the war this area had been used as backstage for the opera house. There were prop rooms, management offices and even rooms for performers to sleep in if they needed it after a late night performance. A perfect hideout for a resistance cell in many ways (I'd actually heard about it from a colleague who'd been given a tour at the opening in 2178).

We found what we were after in the main office. It was a fairly chaotic mess inside, noticeboards covered with info on Reaper movements, images of their different troop types (often with tallies scratched into the photos). At the back there was a wall covered in photos of people with the title 'Wall of remembrance' above it. I studied the photo's and read each of the name's trying to commit them to memory. It was difficult not to think that I had failed every single one of them.

The desks were cluttered with data pads and while I searched the boards, Daniels went through them one by one. To my surprise quite a lot of the intel gathered related to London. Reaper fleet movements in that direction, estimates of total strength in the region, lists of known scouts sent to take a closer look (many of which were crossed out).

Unfortunately there was still very little concrete information about what was happening within the city itself. There were references to fortifications, mention of anti-aircraft cannons being put in place but beyond the outer perimeter, nothing. There were however some hopeful (if fragmented) information on how the resistance was getting on. 'Paris, Berlin & Moscow cells reached the Hague rendezvous, still waiting on arrival from Rome, (Athens)?' and 'higher than expected number of survivors from Dublin massacre now in position on Isle of Man, awaiting further instructions'. Encouraging stuff but it left me concerned about the fate of several other resistance cells.

"I think I've found something sir," Daniels called out.

"What is it?"

"It looks like a plan of how the Oslo resistance hoped to get us into Britain."

"Anything we can still use?"

"Apparently the Reapers are still maintaining a supply line of cargo containers, across the North Sea."

"I thought the Reapers didn't bother to maintain supply lines except for troops transports."

"Apparently here they seem to be using them to transport construction materials, mostly titanium, aluminum and various carbon based alloys."

"Why don't they simply use Reapers to transfer the supplies?" I wondered.

"It's probably to do with the limitations of operating within the atmosphere. Usually Reapers have to reduce mass through their mass effect drives to enable operation in that environment, it's likely adding a lot of extra weight would put an additional strain on them."

"They can't do it?" I asked surprised to hear the Reapers still had limitations.

"I wouldn't say can't definitively, I'd need weeks to calculate a more exact answer. I suspect the Reapers avoid it as the energy drain might compromise their defense capabilities."

"Well that's certainly interesting," I commented. "I assume their plan was to try and get on one of these cargo ships? It seems pretty risky."

"Well according to this the next one leaves in three days."

"That's quite a wait," I muttered then paused glancing at Daniels wound.

"But at least it gives the others a chance to get away. Come on let's get the wound redressed and find somewhere to spend the night."

Three days in hiding, frankly I'd (almost) rather have been back down in the tunnels again. Over that short period we quickly learned where the Reapers were getting the raw materials they would be shipping to London. They were ripping the city apart. Buildings torn down and disassembled, skycars dragged off the streets and hauled away to be crushed.

Predictably the Reapers were incredibly methodical in this activity, each building in a street was demolished and then the ruins disassembled by Husks. They separated out the various elements in each case, taking what they needed and breaking the rest down until there was little or no evidence the building had ever existed.

From the limited amount we could see from the roof of the Opera House they'd already destroyed Grunerlokka and Sentrum and were now working on Majorstuen (read the names off the map in the base, I assume they're districts). Frankly we were only lucky we were lucky not to find ourselves in the middle of it while we'd been wandering around the city looking for this base. Hopefully we're safe for the time being, the Opera House is in a far less built up area of the city so we think they won't bother us here just yet.

There's no mention of any of this is the Oslo resistance's notes so we have to assume it's a recent development with prior shipments coming from the debris of other cities. If so then it looks like their rate of destruction is considerable. It's hard to pinpoint exactly when the Oslo resistance left but by my estimate the city can't have much more than three weeks left at best.

As the third day started to draw to a close I recalled the next part of the plan with some dread. The resistance cell here had come up with an ingenious plan to get us aboard the cargo transport that offered virtually no chance of being detected. All good points in its favour, the bad news came in the form of a parachute, two parachutes to be exact.

The plan was simple. The resistance cell had managed to acquire the remaining prototype UT-47A Kodiaks that were being manufactured nearby. These shuttles possess limited stealth capabilities based on the stealth systems of the SSV Normandy. In theory you could fly one of these to London undetected but as that particular experiment had resulted in the loss of a shuttle, pilot and crew their notes advised using them for short hops to avoid attracting attention. So our job would be to fly the last shuttle over the cargo ship after it had set sail and well... Like I said, parachutes were involved.

Since my last parachuting experience had ended up with me staring down the barrel of a Harvester's cannon, I could only hope it ended better this time. As the evening began Daniels declared that the shuttle's engine troubles were repaired (there was a reason the previous occupants had left it behind) and that it would be safe to take off.

We stayed above the clouds for most of the flight to avoid any chance of being seen by the enemy (the Kodiak has great enhancements to hide you from enemy scans, being actually seen less so). Well we tried to at any rate. It was very dark by then (we didn't even have the lights of the city to help us) and worse yet Daniel's repairs turned out to be less than perfect.

"What do you mean it's not working properly?" I asked.

"The number two engine isn't firing properly, we're struggling to maintain altitude."

"Can we make it to the cargo ship?"

"We'll have to unless we want to put her down in the water. We should be okay."

"Glad to hear it," I called out, crossing my fingers. I was starting to wonder if we'd ever catch a break on our journey to London. So far we'd been marooned, had a train crash, been hunted and were facing the possibility of sinking in a shuttlecraft.

"Next time stay at home," I muttered to myself and hunkered down waiting for us to get in range. As it turned out I didn't have to wait very long. About five minutes later Daniels came through into the back and opened the exterior hatch.

"This is about the best I can do sir, it's now or never."

The shuttle rocked and I was almost thrown out of the hatch before Daniels caught me.

"Steady there sir," he shouted over the roaring winds.

We jumped and began to fall towards the ship. Or were we? As we kept falling I began to see what Daniels had meant by 'the best he could do'. On one side I saw the shuttle tumbling out of the sky and directly below me the cargo ship. Too close, far too close really. Ideally we would've started considerably ahead of the ship to make it easier to land on our target, now there was a risk it could pass straight under us!

All these thoughts blew past me in about a second, years of tactical training telling me what to expect and the only way we'd have a chance of avoiding a splash down. Wait until the last second before opening our chutes. The longer we waited to open the less time we'd spend in the air, watching helplessly as the ship disappeared from underneath us. I swore and cursed as we raced downwards, fearing an injury from another bad landing. If that happened I'd be exposed and vulnerable in enemy territory.

On the deck below us there were about fifty or so Cannibals and a handful of Marauders that I could see but undoubtedly there would be more elsewhere on board. And not just onboard either, as I looked out across the sea I noticed for the first time we had an additional escort namely a flock of Harvesters flying alongside us.

Despite the clear risk of being spotted eventually we had no choice but to open our chutes and drift the final stretch down to the ship. The ship's exhaust fumes helped to hide us somewhat (even if we couldn't see much ourselves either) and we eventually landed atop a cargo container on the top deck and and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Okay then. We'll find somewhere to hide and then spend the next few hours trying to avoid Reaper detection."

Daniels nodded slowly so on that note I led us through an open door and deeper into the heart of the ship. Much as hiding well above everyone on deck had seemed like a good idea at first I knew it wouldn't take the Harvesters long to spot us. Frankly it was a miracle they hadn't already. Still day by day, hour by hour we are moving closer to London. My hometown where Harbinger currently rules from. He doesn't know it yet but I have a surprise in store for him.


	35. Log 31

Log 31

Date: 19TH DEC 2186

Location: LONDON, UK

The ship was immense in size which helpfully provided us with plenty of hiding places to wait out the journey until we reached London. In the end we decided our best bet would be to climb inside one of the shipping containers which weren't locked (who would try to steal from the Reapers afterall). Most of the space inside was filled with scrap metal, piled up to the ceiling and comprised of anything the Reapers could lay their hands on. Iron railings, streetlamps, shuttle parts, I even spotted the remains of an old push bike in there. We remained hidden there for the rest of the night, not speaking to each other (We decided it would be safer that way).

"Do you think this will ever end?" Daniels asked me suddenly, breaking the silence. "The war I mean."

"It will soon," I promised. "Shepard's working on something that should turn the tide."

That much was true, at least to an extent. Having spent some time on the QEC at Oslo I'd found out that Shepard was going to Thessia, the Asari homeworld to chase down a lead that might help with the Prothean weapon the Alliance was building. Apparently the superweapon is almost complete except for an unknown component referred to only as 'the Catalyst'. Thus far no one has had any luck in determining what the Catalyst might be so I could only pray Shepard's mission would prove a success.

"Sir, it's not that I don't trust you or the Alliance but-"

"You're worried that nothing we've got can stop the Reapers," I noted with a sigh, it was afterall a valid concern.

"How can anything stop those things?"

"We do all that we can," I explained, dredging the route learned words up from the past, a reminder of basic officer training as your duty to the Alliance is drilled into you for the first time.

"We keep going whatever it takes until either we fall, or they do. Our duty is to humanity, the Alliance and Earth, no other considerations matter."

"With all due respect sir, I've heard the Black Storm speech before. I'm not sure when the Alliance wrote it they imagined it actually happening."

He wasn't wrong to be completely honest. Black Storm was written after Humanity first joined the galactic community and heard about threats like the Rachni Wars and Krogan Rebellions. It indicates the existence of a threat that is so powerful and so fundamentally incompatible with our way of life that peace is impossible until victory is achieved. If it is declared then it is to be assumed that surrender would effectively destroy our entire species. The Reapers certainly qualify but frankly it's an analogy any Alliance officer would hesitate to use. Having never been invoked in any combat situation in Alliance history it had developed a stigma around it that suggested that it's usage indicated the situation was completely hopeless.

Not exactly the effect I'd been going for but before I could try to clarify my point, Daniels gestured at the scrap pile behind me.

"I mean look at that. It's our civilization being pulled apart, sorted into piles and shipped off to some Reaper construction project. And anything they don't need just gets left to rot and rust and crumble away. I'm sorry sir I don't mean to-" he trailed off as he saw the expression on my face.

"It's alright son, I understand." I replied, though I realized I would have preferred to avoid this discussion altogether. My headache was now back again with a vengeance, feeling almost like something was trying to smash it's way into my skull.

"I'm not going to pretend I don't feel that way myself sometimes," I continued, the admission somehow seeming to make my head pound all the harder. For a moment I even thought I could hear voices or even screams,though they seemed incredibly far off.

"The Reapers are powerful, intelligent and ruthless but even if we can't beat them every life saved is a victory."

"I don't know sir, sometimes I can't help but wonder if it would be more humane to-" Daniels began saying before being cut off as I ordered him to be quiet. I was certain now that there really were faint screams coming from below.

"I think the Reapers might be transporting more than just construction materials on this thing," I said.

We crept through the bowels of the ship, careful to avoid being spotted. Fortunately the guards all stayed at their posts on the top deck so we didn't have any patrols to worry about. As we got closer to the source of the noise we caught sight of the cages. It wasn't just a cargo ship, it was a prison.

The entire front end of the ship was lined with row after row of cages. In each one at least a dozen people (mostly humans) were packed inside. It was barely more than standing room only inside the cages, with most of the prisoners trying to get as close as possible to the bars. They screamed and shouted and banged on the metal bars but their efforts went unnoticed by their captors.

"How many guards do you count?" I asked.

"About thirty I'd say including a Ravager, I'd say we're badly outnumbered."

Personally I put the estimate at more like twenty but the kid still had a point, if we were going to free these people we'd need a plan.

"Any ideas how we can get these people out of here?"

"I'm not certain that's a good idea Admiral," Daniels replied.

"What do you mean?" I asked frowning at him.

He pointed at the cages by way of a reply.

"See those ones in the middle that are just staring, staying silent?"

I looked closely, I hadn't spotted it earlier but he was right. In several of the cages I could see people standing like statues, staring blankly out at the sea.

"I think they might be indoctrinated," he continued. "If we let them out they might go crazy, alert the Reapers maybe even try to kill us."

He had a point, not to mention that while we were still out at sea we were all trapped on the ship. Doubtless the Reapers wouldn't dock the ship until every escapee was either recaptured or killed. Nevertheless as I took another look at the scenes of misery on deck my resolve hardened. It wasn't question of if we would free them but when.

"How long until we reach London?" I asked.

"Could be about four more hours I guess?"

"We'll strike then."

The time passed slowly as we spent the remainder of the trip on edge, worried about being caught given how close we were hiding to the cages. Not to mention the distressing sounds we heard in the form of a symphony of screams from below us. Every new shout made me want to leap out and rush to the prisoners aid but for the time being we were powerless.

The one advantage to staying so nearby is it gave me an opportunity to clearly map the numbers, positions and limited patrol routes of the guards. Piece by piece I hatched a plan to free everyone present (even if it did bank on a considerable amount of chaos once things got started) until I was distracted by the city rolling into view.

To say London, the city in which I was born had changed, was something of an understatement. As we continued to head up the Thames past Dagenham we got a clear view of Husks and indoctrinated servants laboring to construct a long wall stretching way out inland on either side of the river. From what little our scouts had been able to tell us I knew the walls were being built all the way around the city. They were crude (not sure the Reapers are even aware of aesthetics as a concept), built mostly out of collapsed buildings and roads blocked with the kind of debris our cargo container was hauling over.

The purpose had becoming increasing obvious to the Resistance as time went on. The wall, the AA guns being constructed, the attacks on neighboring countries like Finland, Sweden and Ireland (We think the only thing that spared France and the like was that the channel was so easily defensible). It all pointed to one thing, the Reapers were turning the city into a fortress and trying to prevent anyone from getting close. For the Resistance it meant one thing. When coming to London was first suggested the idea was met with considerable skepticism. By the time many were arriving we were committed, the Reapers didn't want us there and that seemed as good a reason as any to go.

We docked near Poplar and the Reaper started to set about mooring the ship and unloading the cargo. All things considered this seemed to be the best chance any of us would get. If we could get the cage doors open then at least everyone here would have a decent shot at escaping.

"So what's the plan?" Asked Daniels.

"I'm going to create a distraction and try to take the Ravager out of play. Once that starts you need to make your way to the cages and start unlocking them. That should cause enough chaos to keep the Reapers off balance and give us a chance to escape, " I explained.

Daniels pulled a face. "The prisoners won't stand much of a chance against Reaper soldiers, they're not even armed."

"That's why you'll be unlocking the big cage in the corner first," I said pointing at it.

Daniels followed my gaze until he finally picked out the one I meant his face going pale at the thought. The cage in question was built larger in order to house its rather larger occupants, namely about a dozen Krogan. Technically they were still unarmed like the rest of the prisoners if you didn't count their fists and head. Having fought a few Krogan in the past I knew from experience to respect their races ability in combat (not to mention their headbutting power).

"If they turn out to be indoctrinated they could rip our heads off!" Daniels pointed out.

"I'm not seeing any other alternatives, we'll just have to take the risk."

I could hear Daniels grumbling slightly under his breath but he crept away towards the cages. Now I just needed to provide an adequate distraction. First things first that Ravager, if I didn't take it out, it's cannons would cut through the crowd causing a massacre. I lobbed a grenade down at its feet (actually it didn't exactly have feet as such but the bottom of its legs in any case) and as the explosion tore it and several Cannibals apart I stood up revealing myself to the guards. Standing on a cargo container high above everyone I shouted out 'The Alliance has returned!' before ducking down to avoid the incoming fire as every gun in the place was turned on me.

I lay flat against the roof of the container, listening to the rattle of gunfire against the metal. I was completely pinned down, forced to wait until Daniels brought in some extra muscle to the fight. Or so I thought at least but I had left the flock of Harvesters out of my calculations. Unable to use their cannons for fear of sinking the ship they simply swooped down towards me.

I rolled off the back of the exposed roof and into the complex maze of the ship, seeking to put some kind of barrier between myself and the Harvesters. Unfortunately nothing deterred them, they smashed through obstacles and knocked containers aside in their efforts to reach me. In the madness of it all I'd lost track of what was happening with the prisoners. It was all I could do to keep myself from being crushed, constantly on the move.

Suddenly Daniels appeared in front of me lobbing more grenades at the head of one of the winged nightmares just behind me. That bought us a short reprieve and we leapt off the ship into the water below.

"The prisoners?" I asked as we dragged ourselves out of the water.

"I unlocked as many cages as I could, seemed like they were starting to get the upper hand when I left," Daniels replied.

"Though I'm not sure how long that'll last."

"At least we gave them a chance."

Daniels nodded. "We did that at least, I think some of them will get away but many of them won't be so lucky."

With nothing more to be said we pressed onwards, determined to reach the rendezvous and rejoin the rest of the Resistance. It wasn't easy making our way to the agreed rendezvous. The occupying force here was larger than any I'd seen, larger than any I'd even heard about from other Resistance cells. Our only saving grace was that much of the workforce was busy constructing the defenses.

As we made our way through the winding streets we often saw indoctrinated servants working alongside Husks, Cannibals and even Marauders. In a way the effect was more disturbing than being attacked by the things. I was used to seeing Husks snarling with a primal rage as they threw themselves at me. Seeing them blank faced, calmly working on construction projects was apart from anything else incredibly creepy.

When we finally (and I do mean FINALLY, it feels like I've been trying to get here for YEARS) arrived at the base it appeared to be abandoned. Of course that was rather the point. All Resistance bases where possible were designed so that from the outside nothing should give the Reapers cause to attack. Nevertheless as we crept inside I admit doubts clutched at my heart. Once inside the empty shell of a building we took the elevator down to the bunker we knew was below. If we had found no one inside then the whole journey would have been a catastrophic disaster for the Resistance. In the next few moments I would discover whether I had managed to bring the Resistance together or completely destroyed it.

Fortunately as the doors opened I found myself blown away at the sheer number of resistance fighters in the main hall of our new base. The entire place was a flurry of activity and general busyness so at first no one noticed our arrival and I was able to stand back and soak it all in.

The room itself didn't look like much (largely crumbling brick walls and temperamental rigged up lighting) but what had my attention were the people. Hundreds of them just in this one room all working together. People from every walk of life and every species you could think of.

In one corner I saw Lara relaxing with a whole bunch of Asari. Some were from her crew but there were dozens I didn't recognize and I thought to myself that the Justicar were finally here (one of them, with deep purple skin and a lethal looking sword noticed my attention and gave me a quick nod before turning her attention away).

In another corner I saw a parked Mako being worked on by Xi Chan and a team of engineers. At the far end of the room I saw a mess hall (well the sign said mess hall but it looked promisingly like a bar to me) with Major Coats sitting on stool waiting to be served. Just to my right there was an armory with scavenged weapons of a thousand different types piled up and Karlakh running a critical eye over all of them.

And in the center my comrades in arms, the leaders of the other Resistance cells (and Coberg). Most of these people I'd only ever spoken to via the QEC but already I was looking forward to working with them in person.

And then finally I was spotted still standing there next to the elevator and everyone stopped what they were doing and turned to look. As I was quickly surrounded by people, making introductions and reconnecting with old friends from the Resistance it occurred to me that I was home. Back in England, in the city where I was born, surrounded by the people that had become part of my family. And though the challenges we face are no less massive than they were yesterday, things seem just a little bit brighter today.

* * *

Well we've reached the end of the penultimate section of the book. Hope everyone is still enjoying it, please review.


	36. Facing the Darkest Days

Facing the Darkest Days

 _The darkest times I ever faced in my military career? Yeah I get asked that question more often than I'd like. My answer always remains the same yet somehow people are still surprised by it every time._

 _Inevitably (in my own personal view at least) the answer is drawn from my experiences during the First Contact war. Why should that surprise people? I guess it comes from a tendency among the politicians and the media to downplay that particular conflict. Not that that's a criticism mind you, I can see the argument for not bringing it up too often. A war fought over a misunderstanding? Well no one want to be reminded of that all the time, particularly given the diplomatic embarrassment of it all._

 _I understand their reasons even if the faces of fallen comrades swim across my vision even as I write these words. Like so many others I was deployed to Shanxi during the war. Our orders? To liberate our colony from alien occupation or if that proved unachievable to dig ourselves into entrenched positions and hold out, keeping the fighting going on that planet so they couldn't launch an offensive against Earth. Yes you did read that correctly, the Alliance top brass absolutely thought that an invasion of the homeworld was possible, perhaps even imminent._

 _My battalion was deployed to the so called ' Clear Blue' valley. It's named for its source, a large alpine lake higher up in the mountains. That lake feeds the river Hope which flows through the valley and down into the capitol. To us the name was a joke with a bad punchline. In the valley the river changed from 'clear blue' to a filthy quagmire that proved a nightmare to fight through._

 _In the original plan the thought had been to use the rough terrain as cover for a surprise attack on the capitol before the Turians knew what was happening. We'd reach the city after two days march we were told, in fact it would take almost two months to cross the distance._

 _The Turian were ready for our attack and quickly threw a large proportion of their forces to prevent us from reaching the city. How they had known we were coming became a topic of intense speculation within our camp. Some thought there might be a spy in our ranks, somehow feeding information of our movements to the Turians. Others believed the top brass could have set this up intentionally as a means of drawing the bulk of the enemy forces into a hellish war of attrition in the swamps._

 _As with many things hindsight offers a much simpler explanation. Now that I understand their technology better I feel almost foolish to think we could have just 'sneaked up' unnoticed. We were all well camouflaged but as far as their scanners were concerned we couldn't have done much worse if we'd marched in formation carrying flares above our heads. I can't begin to imagine what was going through the Turian operators mind when he saw us approaching so brazenly._

 _So the Turians sent an army into the swamps and we spent the next few weeks slugging away at each other. Casualties on both sides were as bad as anywhere in the war. The swamps provided no cover and made moving quickly virtually impossible. The other battalions got the 'glorious' victories, we got mud, death and stalemate but still we held the line._

 _The Turians had an outpost at the bottom of the valley. It served as a final defensive position before the capital. To have any hope of launching an offensive against the city we would have to take that outpost. In total three attempts were made to capture it._

 _The first two attempts were abject failures. I was actually lucky enough to be spared the horror of the first. My unit was held in reserve, waiting for a call to advance that never came. The Turians had swelled their ranks and waited for our assault. The resultant slaughter had driven us back into the valley, at the cost of hard won territory. A week later we had regrouped our position and were ready to try again. This time my unit was on the frontlines and it is this day that most often haunts my this occasion the Turians were far less well prepared than they had been before._

 _We somehow managed to fight our way up the hill and breach their facility, sustaining heavy casualties along the way. Evenly matched this time the fighting was bitter and brutal. Cold Turian determination was pitted against our burning desire to liberate our colony. We battled at close quarters (even hand to hand at times) before word came in from behind our lines. The Turians had put together a second force and attacked our flank. Even as we pressed the attack we were being cut off from our main army. I was actually inside the outpost when I received the order to retreat._

 _At that moment my rage was so great I wanted to charge on ahead, alone. Only the knowledge that my men would follow my suicidal example held me back. I ordered the retreat, taking as many as I could out of the compound and back down the hill. Not all of them came with me. Some were just as enraged as I was and stubbornly remained behind to fight. Some had gotten separated from the main unit and couldn't make it back to us. Too many died._

 _So you can probably understand why I had mixed feelings when I was asked to help plan the final assault. Certainly I wanted payback for fallen comrades but I was apprehensive of another failure that could end in slaughter. Despite the fact the war ended almost thirty years ago this is the first time I feel able to admit that I almost turned the assignment down._

 _But young and naive as I was the idea of turning down an assignment was unthinkable so I did my best to develop a strategy, drawing on past failures. My own squad, let alone the battalion, were not best pleased about what I came up with but ultimately it was my decision. Rather grudgingly it was agreed that we would launch the new offensive in two days time._

 _So there we were on our third attempt, once again charging up the hill towards the outpost. We were more prepared for what they had in store for us there this time so our initial progress was promising. The Turians hadn't had time to properly reinforce their lines (nor had we) or even repair their defenses so we breached the perimeter easily enough._

 _Then word came in that the enemy were pulling the same trick again, their second army quickly moving in to cut us off. This announcement we disregarded entirely, continuing our assault on their outpost. Our attacks quickly overwhelmed all of their outer defenses but the small complex surrounding the main commander center proved impenetrable. This part of the outpost had been built directly into the hillside and even our heaviest weapons couldn't open any breaches. The only way in was the main gate which would have funneled all our men into scope to be picked off like fish in a barrel. Our reports from behind us suggested that we had now been completely cut off by the second army._

 _This was exactly as I had anticipated and signified that it was time to execute the final stage of my plan. Leaving a small force behind to keep the defenders boxed in (the issue of a single entrance hindered them from breaking out just as much as us from breaking in) I led the majority of my troops back down the hill. We had carefully timed this so that our attack from the rear would coincide with the counter attack of our main forces. The Turians second army was caught between our two armies while the troops defending the outpost were pinned down and unable to assist their comrades._

 _The fight was still brutal and bloody but ultimately the Turians never stood a chance. Neither, as much as I hate to admit it, did the troops I left behind to keep the outpost at bay, who were all killed. Their sacrifice, along with my willingness to forgo the capture of the enemy stronghold allowed us to destroy the Turians main army in the region. The outpost commander confirmed his willingness to surrender the position the next day, in truth he didn't have any other choice._

 _So the battle was won and we were free to push onward to the Capitol, effectively ending the months long siege and thus the war on Shanxi. Losing on Shanxi forced the Turians to mobilize a far larger force from across their empire which caught the attention of the Council. When the rest of the Citadel races learned about the essentially private war being waged by the Turians they stepped in to suggest a more diplomatic approach. The war was swiftly ended after that probably saving at least thousands of lives. So does make me the hero who helped end the war or the monster that left eighteen good men up on that hill to die?_

 _All I know is that winning a war sometimes requires bold strategy and the willingness to take risks to achieve victory. Prudence might be a sound strategy in some cases but not when it is simply delaying the inevitable. The hardest lesson for a commander to learn is that there is no single 'correct' strategy and that even 'playing it safe' isn't always a safe thing to do. That's why I took the risk of bringing the Resistance to London, the heart of the Reaper's power. And it's also why I dare take this next risk as well. I am going to kill Harbinger._


	37. Log 32

Log 32

Date: 20TH DEC 2186

Location: EARTH RESISTANCE HEADQUATERS, LONDON, UK

I had a talk with Shepard later that night over the QEC. I don't think I've ever seen him look so defeated before. To say the least, his latest mission hadn't gone well (not that I'm blaming him in the slightest).

The mission was focused on the Catalyst, a final component needed for the Crucible (the Reaper killing superweapon the Alliance has been working on). The trouble is we've no idea what it might be as it's only referenced by name in the Prothean schematics Shepard retrieved from Mars. The Asari Councilor had recently suggested that he might find a lead on this component at the sacred Temple of Athame on Thessia, the Asari homeworld. Grasping at straws perhaps but with the entire galaxy rapidly falling to the Reapers we desperately need to know how to complete the weapon before we lose the ability to act on the information.

By all accounts he set off at top speed, pushing even the Normandy's engines too their limits but even that wasn't enough. According to him by the time he'd reached the Asari homeworld the Reaper invasion was already underway. Given the vital nature of his mission he was granted some token help to get him to the temple but most aid was withheld so it could be used to help defend the planet.

As it turned out the temple was simply a cover being used to disguise something the Asari have apparently been hiding for the last two thousand years or so, a Prothean Beacon. Kept secret from the rest of the Council the Beacon had allowed the Asari constant access to a repository of Prothean knowledge. Which certainly explains the superiority of Asari technology, every few years bringing an amazing new breakthrough in one field or another. I have to admit I felt disgust when Shepard told me about it. If the Asari had allowed the beacon be studied freely by all races who knows how much more we might've learned?

Proving my point nicely is the fact that Shepard's prior experience with Prothean Beacons allowed him to fully activate it within minutes and access a VI stored within the device. The interactive program was made for Protheans but apparently the designer had considered the possibility that it might be activated by the next cycle, by us. It confirmed everything we already believed to be true about the device except for one important detail, it wasn't designed by the Protheans. Apparently as far as the Protheans could tell each cycle attempts to build the Crucible as a final effort to stop the Reapers. Each modifying and refining the original design, iterative design done using thousands of different engineers over millions of years. No one has ever managed to successfully deploy it.

The way everything's going, I think I'm beginning to understand what it must have been like in previous cycles. The desperate burning through of resources while all around us the galaxy itself is burning. Sometimes I can't help but wonder if there ever an equivalent of me in previous cycles. Probably I'd imagine, it's a pretty basic instinct common to all sentient life I've seen (excluding Reapers) to want to protect your homeland. When I hear about other cycles I can't help but wonder who else led a resistance like mine? How well did they do? How long did they last?

The Prothean VI believed the odds were against us but agreed to interface with our systems to assist with the completion of the weapon. Unfortunately that's when Cerberus reared its ugly head again. The organization has been severely damaged at this stage; having lost their bases on Earth and Omega and several of their top people. I think what's left of them now is just a husk, desperately pursuing the Illusive Man's insane goal of controlling the Reapers.

But they do still have assets at their disposal not least of which is the Illusive Man's personal enforcer Kai Leng. He lead the Cerberus incursion on Thessia and managed to steal the Prothean VI. He even managed to defeat the Commander (you could argue the Cerberus gunship helped) and get away with the data. The loss seems to have shaken Shepard pretty badly, I'm worried about him. When he found the VI, I think he thought he'd be able to end the war in a single stroke. I did my best to encourage him and help get him back on his feet. He's still going now, laser focused on getting the data back. Funnily enough I don't recall that Shepard's ever failed like this before which is astonishing in and of itself. It's cruel that the one man who should have no reason to be ashamed of a single defeat, loses at the one time when failure is not an option. God help Kai Leng when he catches up with him is all I can say.

In truth this is my fault far more than it's Shepard's. Before the war but still not all that long ago I had an opportunity to kill Leng myself. I had the man at gunpoint but if I wanted to take him in alive I would have had to let a kid die. There was no way to keep Leng secured and get medical attention for the boy and I don't regret saving him. But I do regret that my morals had demanded I try to capture Leng and not just blow his arrogant head off. You could say I couldn't have known that he'd go on to threaten our one best hope for survival but I knew well enough that he was going to cause some kind of trouble down the line.

In any case I intend to make amends. Shepard will continue to hunt for the Catalyst but I'm looking for something else: a reliable means of killing a Reaper. Xi Chan and I have mapped out a plan that (if it works) should allow us to do exactly that. Our first test subject? Harbinger.

Some might question the logic of going after the oldest, strongest Reaper first but it's not just about getting some payback (though that would be nice). Ideally the technique we're trying to develop will later be applied to help us take down dozens of Reapers but I have to be realistic. The Reapers might attempt to wipe us out after the first attempt or they might eventually adapt to our strategy. This might only be a one shot deal and if that's the case I want to go after their leader and bring that leviathan down.

For this mission, a group of us gathered discretely in a small chamber on one of the lower levels. We keep our numbers low, just the five of us, at the meeting. The fewer of us are involved the less chance of our plans being betrayed to the Reapers. I arrived first bringing Lara and Xi Chan with me. The next to arrive is another Justicar, the famous Matriarch Ophelia who I had spotted as I arrived the previous day. Having seen Lara in action so many times I thought I understood the power of the Justicar well enough but this lady took 'formidable' to a whole new level.

Standing at about six and a half feet tall and protected by ornate red armor that subtly complimented her deep purple completion she looked around the room with disdain and supreme confidence. The room was strewn with debris and other obstacles but she maneuvered round them without once breaking her gaze from her objective. Her movements were perfect, poised and controlled. She saw what to do and moved herself into position her eyes constantly alert to new threats and dangers.

The last member of our group was considerably less refined but no less welcome. Rupert had been introduced to me as the leader of the Irish Resistance cell. His military career began the day of the Reaper invasion but during that time he'd proven himself to be highly competent. Even I was astonished by the fortitude he'd shown in the face of the Dublin massacre. In spite of the slaughter he'd kept his head and thus saved most of his men. It didn't hurt that he had a burning desire for revenge against Harbinger (who had led the massacre) either. In my hunt for trustworthy allies he seemed like a good bet.

"So what's the plan then, Admiral?" He asked as he arrived.

"I think it's over to Xi Chan to explain that," I replied.

Xi Chan gave me a small nod and stepped forward.

"We believe, that -uh is to say we hope that we have found a weakness that we can exploit against the Reapers."

There was considerable interest from the group at this statement.

"What sort of weakness?" Asked Ophelia.

"Well perhaps it's best if I explain how we reached our conclusion first," said Xi Chan nervously.

"The first thing we noticed is that so far we have only seen Harbinger and other Reapers seize so called 'direct control' over Marauders."

"And?"

"Well it got us wondering why just Marauders?" I said.

"Why not take control of any unit close to one of their targets? We've seen that taking direct control makes that specific unit much more effective in combat, why not use Brutes or Harvesters instead?"

"Alright then, why don't they?" Asked Rupert.

Xi Chan and I glanced at each other for a moment.

"We think it's because they don't have a choice," I said.

"Really?" Asked the Matriarch frowning.

"I've had reports from the Justicar that traveled with Shepard that Harbinger controlled the Collectors when he wished as well."

"That still conforms to our current theory," clarified Xi Chan, taking over the explanation from me.

"The Reapers had control over the Collectors for thousands of years, easily enough time to develop an interface for taking control of that race."

"And you suspect the technology must be adapted for each new species which takes time," the Justicar deduced.

"That is our current theory yes."

"Hang on a second," objected Rupert. "The Marauders are created from Turians. Far as I know they haven't had any longer to study the birds than they have any other species."

"Except that they did," I cut in. "With Saren."

"Saren was a rogue Turian Spectre that fell under the influence of a Reaper left behind after the previous cycle, a sort of advanced guard for the invasion you might say. As far as we know that Reaper, named Sovereign had years to scan and experiment with Saren."

"But Saren and Sovereign were both destroyed during the battle of the Citadel over three years ago."

"The Reapers often referred to Sovereign as a 'Vanguard', an advance scout sent to keep track of the progress of our galactic civilization. It makes sense that each Vanguard would record all the data it gathered on this cycle to aid the main Reaper fleet in its invasion. We believe this would all be stored in a predetermined safe location including everything Sovereign learned from experimenting on Saren."

"An interesting theory, but how does any of this help us defeat the Reapers?" Enquired the Matriarch.

"Well Sovereign was the ship that made the attack on the Citadel almost three years prior to the start of the war. The Reaper was relying on Saren to give it control of the station. Unfortunately for Sovereign, Saren was killed before he could complete his task so it was forced to take direct control of his body and defend the position from Shepard. We believe it used an early prototype version of the control interface used on the Marauders." Xi Chan went on to explain.

"But when Commander Shepard put the resurrected Saren out of action it caused the interface to malfunction, generating a feedback loop that disabled the actual Reaper."

"And you believe that we can reuse the same effect against Harbinger? How can you be sure the Reapers haven't adapted to this threat?"

"You're right of course, the Reapers have adapted a defense but the underlying vulnerability still exists," Xi explained before holding up a small disk.

"This contains a computer virus I developed while waiting for the Admiral to arrive in London. Thanks to the feedback loop a simply titanic amount of data is exchanged between the Reaper and its puppet when that puppet is killed. Enough to effectively hide any malicious code the puppet might be infected with."

"So if the virus is uploaded to the implants of the Marauder that Harbinger is controlling and then the Marauder is killed?"

"Then it should be successfully uploaded to Harbinger itself," Xi Chan confirmed.

"But it's not going to be easy, we'll need full support from all of you to make this work," I cautioned.

"If this plan has a chance of bringing down that monster then the Justicar Order will see it done," stated Matriarch Ophelia.

"And we'll be joining you as well but what about that General of yours? Shouldn't we be telling him about all this as well?"

Asked Rupert seeming confused as to the exclusion of such a high ranking officer.

"I've asked Coberg to oversee our intelligence gathering missions for the Alliance with Pierre (head of the Paris resistance)." I explained. Rupert still seemed confused with my choice but the others understood what I had left unspoken. I was no longer prepared to trust Coberg with anything so secret.

"There is one other issue we have to deal with," I continued (mostly as a distraction from my decision about Coberg).

"According to my earlier chat with Xi Chan in order to make this idea work he needs access to recorded communications sent by Harbinger. To that end we've located an enemy communications tower about five klicks from this position. Take the rest of the day to prepare because tomorrow we take the fight to the enemy."

As the group dispersed to begin making their preparations, Lara remained behind to speak with me.

"Are you sure putting Coberg in charge of surveillance operations is wise? It's still a critical area."

"We can't shut him out entirely, we can't let him know about this project and I refuse to put him in charge of base defenses so what else is there? He's being insulated as much as possible from mission specific details."

"I still don't trust him, no matter how much you try to restrict his access without raising his suspicion he could still find some way around those limits."

"Then it's a good thing you ordered Karlakh to keep a close eye on him," I said but she remained quiet.

"You did give the order, didn't you?"

"Yes of course I did."

"And I've made sure Major Coats stays close at hand too. If Coberg does try something we'll have a better chance of getting some evidence of his indoctrination. Once we have that we can go to the others and get him removed."

"I hope it works," she noted.

"But that's not the only thing I'm worried about. This plan of yours-"

"Having second thoughts already?" I asked.

"No, my first duty is to the Justicar Order and it looks like you managed to convince my sisters."

"But?"

"This is dangerous Anderson. Why risk so much when we're so close to-"

"To what?" I asked. "What have you heard?"

"Rumors have been going round about there being some way for the Reapers to be defeated. I thought it was crazy until I someone told me that Shepard was going to Thessia to finish it."

So she hadn't heard the news, frankly I hardly felt that I was the right person to break it to her but she had a right to know. I sighed heavily, delaying the moment I'd have to tell her.

"Commander Shepard failed that mission," I said finally.

"I spoke with him this morning about it. It was because of Cerberus."

"And Thessia? Did you hear any news about Thessia?"

"Nothing good. The Reapers gained complete control over the planet about two hours after Shepard was forced to evacuate. I'm sorry."

Lara closed her eyes and remained silent for a long time. It wasn't long before her tears started flowing freely down her face as she wept. I'm not sure what response I was expecting from her but it certainly wasn't this. I turned away and made to leave so that she could grieve privately but her voice called me back.

"It's funny, I was always taught that the Justicar way, abandoning everyone from my old life, would make this easier. But now I think back to old colleagues, old friends and I don't even know if they were still living on the Homeworld or not."

I turned back to face her.

"Even if they are on Thessia, we know better than most that there's still hope, even under occupation. And Shepard will come through for us in the end even if I have to kick him back into gear occasionally."

She managed a small smile.

"I hope so and thank you for everything you've done Admiral."

"Could you let your let your sisters know? I think it would be better coming from one of their own."

She nodded and then departed leaving me to my thoughts.

Earth, Palaven, Thessia and so many other worlds are all now under Reaper control. The longer this war goes on the more their efforts to eradicate our populations accelerate. We need a way to stop the Reapers but failing that we at least need the means to fight them. In short, we need this to work.


	38. Log 33

Log 33

Date: 21ST DEC 2186

Location: EARTH RESISTANCE HEADQUARTERS, LONDON, UK

We arrived at the tower the following day and as expected it was a fortress. Fortunately there wasn't too much Reaper tech at play here. I'm guessing this isn't a key Reaper facility so the defenses were mostly limited by expediency (not that they were still formidable but at least the tower wasn't encased in Reaper armor and guarded by Destroyers). I think it had been a small skyscraper once but now the beautiful glass structure was hidden beneath twisted sheets of metal welded into place as crude armor plating. Several balconies had been added so that a group of Marauders could survey the area from above. The way they were positioned up there reminded me of gargoyles perched atop the battlements of an ancient stone castle.

The area directly around the tower had been leveled leaving nothing behind but rubble and debris. We were hiding in a small cluster of houses as close to the tower as we could get without being spotted. On the ground in front of the tower Ravagers, Cannibals, a horde of Husks and a single Banshee awaited us. A nice little army of guards considering the tower probably didn't matter to the Reapers all that much.

On our side we had the support of every Justicar still alive on Earth, all the members of the Vancouver Resistance I felt I could trust and as many of the Dublin Resistance as were willing to come. I spent several minutes studying the tower, searching for a weakness when the Matriarch interrupted my planning with an unexpected proposal.

"You're suggesting we attempt a full frontal assault?" I asked incredulously. I struggled to believe anyone could look at that tower and not be fazed by it.

"I am," she replied unflinchingly.

"My sisters and I can make the initial assault and gain swift entry into the tower. Since it seems likely that there is a considerable number of adversaries spread throughout the tower our best option is to utilize the element of surprise and maintain our momentum to prevent the enemy from gathering in sufficient force to impede our progress. For maximum speed we'll need your forces to protect our rear picking off any enemies we may have missed."

"Right," I said as an automatic response before frowning deeply. I didn't enjoy being dictated to and considered refusing the Justicar's plan. But I reconsidered, I like to think I'm able to respect the capabilities of others and I couldn't doubt the Matriarch's abilities. I consented to the plan and watched as the Asari got into position feeling slightly intrigued by their confidence.

I didn't have to wait long to see the justification for that confidence. When Ophelia gave the signal the tower came under it's first wave of assault from a dozen well trained snipers. Their shots were deadly accurate, felling the Marauders from their perches and creating a carpet of corpses that led to the front door. One shot was aimed at the Banshee but she got lucky, a Ravager stepping into the shots path at the last moment.

The Reapers scrabbled to react to the rapid attack and began diving from cover and scanning the rooftops to try and see who was shooting at them. Frankly they would've done better to watch what was right in front of them as the rest of the Justicar charged out into their midst firing off biotics to blast a path through to the doors.

Matriarch Ophelia led the charge, slashing her sword left and right to clear the few scattered Husks still in her way. She dealt with that threat easily enough but as she approached the steps in front of the tower a Ravager blocked her path cannons ready to fire. She launched herself into the air over its head. A second Ravager lay in wait on the stairs but while in midair the Justicar crushed it beneath the weight of a wave of biotic energy.

Despite this impressive display she was far from safe. She had in fact landed right next to the Banshee guarding the doors and the first Ravager was trying to turn itself round to face her. I ordered my men to move in but as it turned it was rather unnecessarily. The Banshee lunged the Matriarch with one arm, attempting to impale her with dagger like claws. She ducked beneath the blow and came up slashing her sword.

The ill timed blow had cost the Banshee an arm but the Ravagers slow speed cost it even more. By the time it had turned to face the Justicar she had already removed the Banshee's second arm and had turned to face it, ready to strike and with death in her eyes. The first biotic blast knocked it flying onto its back. The second destroyed it. With no other options the now armless (but apparently not yet harmless) Banshee dove at the Justicar trying to knock her to the ground. Within seconds it was headless.

The attack by my men had served to wipe out the remaining Cannibals and Husks outside the tower and already the Justicar were pushing on inside. Our job at this stage was fairly straightforward. The Justicar went straight for the largest areas with the most enemies they could find. We held back, guarding the many corridors and clearing the endless number of rooms. We killed plenty of Reaper troops ourselves (usually in small groups) but I can't begin to imagine how many fell to the Asari.

Eventually we made it to the top of the tower, the control hub for its operation. That's when I first caught sight of what the Reapers were turning Salarians into. I think those particular nightmares will haunt me for the rest of my life. We hadn't known until that moment that the Reapers had even tried to turn the Salarians into more of their monsters. Now we knew why we hadn't encountered them until now,. No one had ever tried to break into a facility like this before. Apparently the Reapers didn't see this species as useful for front line warfare as we'd seen with other races. Instead they had a far worse fate in mind for them, to be used as living computers.

There was about a dozen in the room, each attached to one of the consoles that were spread in a circle around the center of the room. We could only see the top half of their bodies, the rest of them (if indeed there was anything left of them below that point) was plugged into the consoles themselves so they sat in the center of them, cut off at the waist. Their bodies were a twisted mess of wires and cables, their eyes blank and cloudy. They couldn't see but somehow they knew how to work the controls. They were oblivious to the fall of the tower or perhaps like the machines they were being used as they simply had no concept of anything outside of their designated function.

Xi Chan was the last one to enter (we'd kept him back for protection) and the horror was clear on his face before he'd taken three steps into the room. His eyes, wide and round as dinner plates scanned the room taking in the full scale of the nightmare around us. I waited patiently as he came to terms with this unexpected find.

"Can we-" he began to ask, gesturing with his pistol in hand. I shook my head grimly.

"I don't think so," I replied.

"How can you just leave them here like this?" Xi demanded angrily.

"They're keeping the tower operating, if we kill them now the Reapers will notice and send reinforcements," I explained feeling like a coward.

"Don't worry, we won't leave them here like this. You have my word on that."

The Salarian nodded and plugged his device into the nearest console. He spent a few minutes tapping away at it furiously, taking out his pent up rage on the keypad. Eventually he nodded with satisfaction and walked away from it.

"Is it done?"

He shook his head.

"I've started the program running, the virus is being broken up and hidden among chunks of legitimate communication data the tower has received."

"So Harbinger will think its just part of the ordinary transmission?"

"That's the idea."

"How long will it take?"

"About half an hour, there's a lot of data to process there."

We spent the next twenty five minutes waiting anxiously unsure if the program would finish before more Reaper troops arrived. The short version is: it didn't finish in time.

Our spotters on all sides suddenly started calling out as Harvesters approached from every direction. They landed all around the tower like a flock of vultures waiting for their chance at a carcass. Next a massive troop transport ship landed, crushing the houses we'd hidden in while planning our attack on the tower. A large ramp lowered and rank upon rank of Reaper soldiers (of every type imaginable) marched out to take up positions in front of the tower. But worse yet was still to come. A black monstrosity glided out of the dust and smoke and towards us. It dwarfed the tower, so tall it wasn't possible to see the whole thing but I knew if we could measure it, it would be more than two kilometers in height. Harbinger had come for us.

"How did this happen? How did they know where to find us?" Asked Lara furiously.

"They might have simply detected that we attacked the tower somehow," said Xi Chan reasonably.

"No it has to be more than that. Have you seen the size of the army out there? And Harbinger's here too, it wouldn't bother with something like this in person unless someone told the Reapers who was coming," Lara stated coldly.

"And we both know who that person is don't we?"

"How? How the hell could he have even known about this operation?"

"You think what you like, I'm done trusting him. I've had it with these cloak and dagger games! When we get back I'm going to-"

"If we get back to the base, I'll consider myself the luckiest man who ever lived." I muttered, watching as still more Harvesters swooped into the area. Turning to face Xi Chan I asked him if we could use the program against Harbinger.

"Not yet, it needs at least another couple of minutes before we can use it." Xi Chan whispered back.

"Right then," I said. "I'll try and buy you some time."

"You're going out there?" asked Lara incredulously.

"If Harbinger didn't already know I was here, it wouldn't have come," I reminded her.

"I'll just have to keep him talking."

I strolled out onto the balcony feeling a surprising calm given the situation. I bought my assault rifle with me though I doubted it would be of any use.

"Admiral Anderson."

"Harbinger."

"You will come with us now."

"What the hell for exactly?"

"You have information on Shepard."

"Why do you care? He's not a threat to you," I called out not believing it but hoping Harbinger might. More than anything I didn't want Harbinger gunning for Shepard.

"He may yet gain the power to decide the fate of this cycle. I must know what he would decide."

"What the hell does that mean?" I yelled at it in frustration. Up until then I had just been focused on playing for time but now I was too incensed to think.

"Synthesis. Peace. My Destiny."

"What? What do you mean peace? You started this war!"

"The conflict between organics and synthetics is inevitable, the cycle must continue."

"You're wrong, our alliance with the Geth proves that. Machines and organics can live side by side."

"Your feeble mind fails to grasp the complexity of the problem or the flaws of your solution. The alliance you speak of has lasted mere weeks, born out of fear our power. Your lives are measured in years and decades, we are eternal and we have seen the problem across the eons. Considered from that perspective your alliance is irrelevant." Harbinger intoned in its deep, powerful voice.

"It has happened before and come to nothing. And it will happen again if the cycle continues."

"If? You mean the cycle can be broken?"

"The experiment must run until a solution is found. In your cycle Shepard may be that solution."

"So let him do whatever is he's meant to do now. Just let it end."

"Unacceptable. He may yet fail and your species along with him. We will continue the experiment until a solution is found or organic life evolves beyond even our ability to contain it. Now it is time for you to come with us. Surrender, your situation is hopeless."

Harbinger emitted the same fog horn blast I had heard from other Reapers in the past. In the past it hadn't been so bad, like small waves crashing against a sea defense but at such close range? It was a tsunami. I was paralyzed, my head feeling like it had been split open as the sound washed over me. For a moment I imagined I could see myself dropping my weapon and raising my hands before Harbinger in surrender. I threw off this vision and hauled myself to my feet, breathing heavily.

"I won't give you what you want Harbinger, not ever."

Harbinger addressed his troops.

"Storm the tower. Bring me Anderson. Kill everyone else."

I looked below and saw Reaper forces charging towards the main doors. The Harvesters took flight and soon filled the skies above the tower. The attack had begun.

I raced back inside the tower to warn the others.

"We're under attack, is that program ready yet?"

"It is but we still need to upload it onto Harbinger's puppet and then kill it."

"Can you upload it from here?"

Xi Chan shook his head.

"We need direct access."

"And our target is outside the tower, with an army of Reaper troops between us. Maybe I can get us close, they still want to take me alive."

"It's risky, they can't kill you but they could still grab you or shoot you in the leg or something."

"Aye and what about the rest of us? If you go outside, Harbinger won't have any reason not to demolish the whole tower," pointed out Rupert.

"That's why we all need to get out of the tower beforehand."

"Are you mad? If we go out there we'll all be sitting ducks."

I sighed heavily.

"I know. But the tower isn't a safe haven, it's a death trap. If we stay here Harbinger will just keep throwing troops at us until we're all dead. If we're going to try and get out we should do it now before they completely surround the tower. While there's still enough of us left to stand a chance out there."

"How do we get out, they're storming the main doors."

"A place like this must have had other exits even if the Reapers covered them up. Hell blow a hole in the walls if you have to. Take my troops and try to get as many out as you can. Just break out and try to run for cover, I'll try and keep Harbinger distracted to give you a chance."

"What about the Justicar?" Asked the Matriarch but from my hesitation she quickly realized what I was going to ask.

"You want us to hold the main doors to give everyone else a chance of escape."

"If there was any other way of getting us out of this-"

"No. You're right that this is the only way that any of us survive this. I sent several of my sisters downstairs after you went out so the Reapers hopefully haven't beached the doors yet. I shall go and join them now, T'Ren you're with me."

Lara stayed where she was.

"Anderson will need my help to reach Harbinger's puppet, I'm sorry."

The Matriarch cocked her on one side for a moment examining Lara closely. I remember thinking that this would be a bad time to argue over the Justicar Code but to my surprise she simply nodded.

"Very well. Best of luck to you Admiral. I surprise even myself when I say that it was an honor to serve under you, no matter how briefly. But if I might make one final request?"

"Anything."

"Make sure you kill Harbinger. A lot of my sisters are going to die today, I want the Reapers to remember what we stood for."

She left in her usual brisk, no nonsense manner with the rest of the Justicar (except for Lara) leaving me near speechless in her wake.

"Right then," I said clearing my thoughts.

"Xi Chan and I will get out downstairs and head straight for the target. Lara go down to one of the first floor balconies and cover us for as long as you can, then fall in behind us."

"What about them?" He asked, pointing in the direction of the Salarian husks still in the room.

"Plant charges but be quick about it, there's no time to lose."

Once we felt everyone else had time to get out of the tower near the main entrance. Xi Chan stuck as close as possible to me as possible to prevent the Reapers from getting a clear shot at him. As expected Harbinger quickly identified that I was had left the tower and begin charging its main canon, preparing to demolish it. Before it got the chance Xi hit the switch on the explosives he'd planted in the control room. There was an immediate burst of flames from the window above us as the explosion destroyed the entire floor, Xi nodded in satisfaction pleased to have given the Salarians a clean death. Helpfully the explosion also served as a signal for the Justicar to come charging out of the main doors and begin their attack.

Some of the resistance had stayed to help them fight but even so they were outnumbered at least twenty to one. Even the first wave had three times as many fighters as they did. Still they were undeterred as they charged out onto the battlefield guns blazing, swords flashing and biotics already cutting swathes though the enemy ranks. This was the Justicar Order as it had never been seen since the Rachni Wars. United for the first time in two millennia, an army of highly trained, powerful warriors with more than ten thousand years experience between them.

Even so on open ground it would have been a relatively short fight. The Harvesters had by this point unleashed a heavy bombardment of the area from the air, leaving the ground pockmarked with creators that served as perfect foxholes. The terrain served the Asari well, providing plenty of cover while simultaneously impeding the progress of the larger Reaper units and of course their biotic attacks also disrupted the enemy formation as their soldiers were tossed about like rag dolls.

We avoided the main fighting by skirting around the battle, dodging from one foxhole to another. That's not to say our progress went unchallenged of course. Husks, able to traverse the terrain more easily than any other Reaper unit, pursued us relentlessly but were easy enough to deal with. At one point we jumped into a new pit to evade fire only to be ambushed by a Marauder. It knocked me to the ground and was busy trying to bash my head in with its rifle when Xi stepped up behind it and ripped out an important looking cable. The creature spasmed briefly before collapsing and we pressed on.

Harbinger's puppet had followed the first wave (which was currently being decimated) into battle. We saw it on a nearby rise surrounded by Ravagers and Banshees. With no other option we hurled every grenade we could lay our hands on into their midst and prayed the target's shields would hold. Fortunately they did (just) and while its bodyguards were blown apart Harbinger was flung clear of the explosion and landed near by.

Xi Chan reacted first, running the last few meters down to the target. I saw him kneel down next to the fallen figure of our enemy to administrator the code. I ran to catch up with him but before I could get close Harbinger's puppet seemed to come alive again. It shot Xi twice in the gut then grabbed him by the throat and sent him flying towards me, knocking me down. Harbinger got up and pointed to something in the middle distance. When I saw what it was my blood ran cold, the second wave of Reaper troops was almost on us.

Matriarch Ophelia and her comrades had astonishingly somehow managed to rout the first wave of attackers but they had suffered heavy losses. More than half the resistance fighters that had stayed and five of the Justicar were dead. The next wave would almost certainly wipe us out and Harbinger would get everything it wanted. In a rage I charged towards his puppet firing as I ran. It was a futile attempt, Harbinger raised a hand and sent me and Xi flying backwards in a blast of biotic power that caught me off guard. Only a tiny percentage of Turians are born with biotics but it seems Harbinger had found one to serve as its puppet.

We landed in another crater somewhere behind the Asari's lines. I crawled though the mud over to where Xi Chan was lying. He was in a very bad way, there was blood around his mouth and he had to use both hands to stem the bleeding from his wounds.

"I... I did it," he said every word clearly causing him pain.

"You...just...need...to..."

"To kill Harbinger," I finished for him and looked out at the battlefield. Several Justicar were already firing at Harbinger's puppet, I guess they'd seen my attempt to kill it and assumed everything was in place.

"I think they know."

We watched from our little bunker as the Asari and Reaper forces clashed. They threw their full strength against Harbinger, he was holding them off for the time being but it was surely only a matter of time now. I hauled myself to my feet and headed out there again. The addition of one injured Alliance soldier was unlikely to make much of a difference at this point but I might be able to get some help for Xi.

Or so I thought. I never even saw the Harvester swooping through the sky or the barrage it delivered. I remember the impact, the explosion throwing me through the air, hitting my head and then nothing. Just one more body on the battlefield, lying among the dead.


	39. Log 34

Log 34

Date: 23RD DEC 2186

Location: EARTH RESISTANCE HEADQUARTERS, LONDON, UK

I was all alone, that was my first thought when I woke up. No, not completely alone I realized, I still had the dead to keep me company. They were all around me, the bodies of my fallen comrades and their enemies. I could see them everywhere I looked, their eyes still wide open in silent accusation. I had led these people to their deaths. Every fresh corpse I spotted felt like a blade piecing my heart.

I was in a ditch with about five other people, none of whom were still alive. But it was only when I hauled myself back onto my feet that I saw the true scale of the destruction. Everything around me had been flattened, the tower demolished along with all the nearby buildings. I couldn't see anyone, Human, Asari or even Reaper in the area. A thick fog obscured much of the area from view but the silence told it's own story. No gunfire, no sounds of battle, no voices. I walked around aimlessly, trying to piece together what had happened after I lost consciousness.

In the fog it was difficult even to know which direction to head in. Without any landmarks left standing that I could use to navigate I was effectively blind. In the end I marched toward the heaviest concentration of fallen Reaper soldiers, knowing it lead away from the tower. Once I reached the perimeter of the battlefield I could orientate myself and set off in the one direction that might (if I was extremely lucky) provide me with some answers.

The original battle plan had been to exit the tower after we had what we needed from it and wait for Reaper reinforcements to arrive. We figured that once they realized the tower had been attacked their scouts would fan out into the surrounding area searching for the culprits. The perfect opportunity to ambush one of their scouting parties and deploy our plan against Harbinger. Obviously that plan had failed spectacularly now but we'd set a specific site to fall back to, to wait at after we left the tower. I hoped it might now serve as a rallying point for any survivors of the battle. Assuming there were any.

No sign of a Reaper corpse on the battlefield. It was possible the fog was covering it but unlikely. A two kilometer long capital ship isn't something that's easily missed. Which meant in all likelihood Harbinger had survived the battle. Not surprising, given the circumstances but painful nonetheless. With so much slaughter it would have been easier if I had anything to show for it (well slightly easier in any case). And still no sign of any living Reapers which was odd to say the least. The last thing I remembered they had been on the verge of overrunning us, so where were they now? As strong as I knew Justicar to be I seriously doubted they'd managed to destroy the entire army alone.

Indeed the one thing I could say for certain as the fog started the lift away from the battlefield is that the Justicar were no more. I could see more clearly now where each Asari warrior had fallen, their distinctive armour making them easy to pick out. Many of them lay next to Resistance fighters they had died fighting alongside, Humans, Turians even a Krogan who fell with a smile on his lips and his knife in the enemy. I looked for Xi Chan but I couldn't see any Salarian bodies, at least not yet.

As the fog dissipated I hoped I would spot something that might explain what was going on. Unfortunately 'explain' isn't quite how I would describe it as the gray curtain rolled back somewhat to reveal the Citadel hanging over the city. It was an eerily strange moment, the Citadel is such a familiar sight to me that it took me a moment to recognize just how surreal the scene was. The Citadel is located, was located in the Serpent Nebula thousands of LY away. Briefly I wondered if I'd simply gone insane or was dreaming all of this. Nothing I was seeing now seemed to match up with what I remembered happening before I lost consciousness.

I was just thinking this when I heard a shout call out from the distance.

"Stop right there! Don't come any closer or we'll shoot."

The voice sounded human or possibly Asari. I raised my hands and stepped closer so they could see me more clearly.

"It's alright, it's just me."

"I said stop right there," I was close enough now to recognize the voice as Lara's, she sounded angry and unsure of herself.

"Come on Lara, it's me."

"And how do I know you're not the indoctrinated agent?"

"What?"

"I'm serious Anderson. How did you survive out there, why didn't the Reapers kill you as well?"

"Just blind luck, I guess. I was knocked unconscious in the battle, the Reapers probably mistook me for one of the dead."

"Why should I believe that?"

"It's the truth. I don't really know what else I can tell you beyond that."

"Give me something Anderson," she pleaded, the desperation clear in her voice.

"Give me I reason to trust you again, please."

I hesitated. A reason why she should trust me again? I'd just lead more than a hundred people to their deaths in a single failed mission. I wasn't sure I deserved to lead anymore. Or deserved anyone's trust. My throbbing head made it so hard to think about anything except my recent failure. In the back of my mind I heard constant whispers filling me with self doubt. I could almost imagine they were the voices of my dead comrades blaming me, accusing me.

It wasn't until that moment that it had occurred to me that there might be another explanation for my symptoms. The headaches, the bleak depression, the whispers. I could be the one that was indoctrinated. I almost had a seizure from the the realization. That was how it felt as the fear, the horror rose within me, rooting me to the spot. Fear in the face of what might happen was something I'd seen and faced many, many times in my life. But this was a kind of fear I had only ever seen a handful of times. Often in the eyes of wounded soldiers, learning for the first time that they had lost an arm or a leg or an eye. It was the fear you feel when something horrible has already happened and there is no way to go back or undo it.

Desperately I searched inward, trying to find some hint that it was true (or possibly just desperately trying to disprove it). As I did so the whispers receded and then vanished entirely to the point that I started to question if they had ever been more than my own thoughts. My headache too seemed less bad, as if I had been making more of a fuss about it than was warranted. Was I convinced? No not by a long shot but I still hoped it had simply been my imagination (and feared it wasn't).

Still at the very least I had finally thought of an answer to Lara's question (who had grown increasingly impatient as I had wrestled with my own conscience).

"If I had betrayed you, the Reapers would be waiting for us here. I knew about this place same as you did."

Lara hesitated and then lowered her weapon.

"Fine then, you better get inside."

"How many of the others made it?" I asked as we headed into the building.

"See for yourself," she replied. "This is everybody."

"Jesus..."

There was less than ten of them in total or to be precise, five humans, two Turians (who I'd seen in the resistance but never met) and one Salarian. Xi Chan was lain down on a table in the center of the room.

"How is he?"

"Alive. Just about. I managed to get him and one other off the battlefield and to safety."

"And the others?"

"Survivors that got clear of the tower and made their way here while we kept the Reapers busy."

"But there's so few of them. Do you think there might be any more still out there?"

"I think if they aren't here, they're either dead or deserters."

"I can't say I blame them. What about your sisters?"

"All dead," she said simply.

"I'm sorry."

"I begged them to come with me. To run and maybe help save a few more lives along the way," she sniffed, a single tear rolling down her cheek.

"But they wouldn't, they fought to the last woman. True Justicar right to the very end. The code demanded that they should fight the battle, so they fought. Matriarch Ophelia gave her life cutting down Harbinger's puppet."

That was a surprise. I'd assumed that they hadn't been able to complete the plan (given the lack of Harbinger's body on the battlefield).

"Did it, did it work?"

Lara gave me a strange look before speaking again.

"For a moment we thought it had. Harbinger went berserk for several minutes, firing randomly all over the place. He blew several holes in his own army which gave us a chance."

"And then?"

"He just seemed to get a grip on himself again. He stopped firing and just said 'Virus purged' or something. Then he just went back to attacking us."

"How did any of you survive?"

"Everyone on the battlefield, everyone except for you was killed. But Harbinger was merciless, it combed the streets hunting for anyone who'd managed to slip away."

"So how did you-"

"Eventually another Reaper arrived, a Capital ship. It said they had to leave, something about the 'time of the Harvest being at hand'."

"And they just went?"

"Yes the whole army just packed up and left, like we weren't even important anymore. Correct me if I'm wrong but didn't you say the Harvest was-"

"Harvesting genetic material from humans, yes. But they've been doing that for months now, despite our best efforts to stop them, this has to be something more."

"Like what?"

"I'm not sure but it does sound like something else is coming, something big. I think it might have something to do with the Citadel."

"The Citadel? How is that relevant?"

"Well I imagine it's here for a reason."

"What do you mean it's here? It's on the other side of the galaxy!"

"I mean it's here," I replied pointed up at the ceiling by means of demonstration.

"Take a look for yourself."

With a deeply skeptical look she went outside to see for herself, she was back rather quickly.

"What's going on Anderson?"

I shook my head.

"I don't know anything more than you do, not for certain. My best guess is that the Reapers are responsible."

"Then they've taken the Citadel, the capital of galactic civilization. We've lost the war."

She had a point. I hadn't really had time to process this latest revelation myself but she had hit on the key issue. The last safe place in the galaxy was lost and now it was just a matter of time.

"No," I said, shaking my head as I banished all thoughts of despair. "I won't accept that. Not while the fleets are still fighting, not until the last soldier we have has been killed. We should get back to the base and warn the rest of the Resistance."

"We managed to salvage a roller that can get us there."

"Is that safe?"

"There's no other way of getting Xi out of here given his current condition. Fortunately I think the Reapers are distracted at the moment, now might be our best chance."

"Alright then, let's move out."

We packed a few essentials onto the roller, climbed aboard and started driving back towards the base. To be honest for the first few miles I was still worried a Reaper would blow us off the road but the city was quieter than I'd seen it for awhile. Not that we couldn't see the Reapers mind you. There were still several in view but all high above us and hurriedly flying towards the center of the city where the Citadel was waiting.

Back inside the roller Lara had very different concerns.

"Anderson, what if we're leading the indoctrinated agent right back to the headquarters?"

"Most of them came from that base," I pointed out.

"But not all of them, we drew troops from several of the smaller Resistance bases for this operation."

"No one is going to be given a chance to contact the Reapers or do anything else for that matter until we resolve that matter once and for all," I reassured her.

"Personally I'm more concerned that the agent might still be at the base."

"No one back at the base even knew about our plan, that was the point."

"Didn't they? No one overheard anything? Or had someone reporting to them? Let's just say I'm keeping an open mind about it."

We exited the vehicle and took the elevator down towards the Resistance headquarters still discussing the subject as we descended.

"I know who you think it is but there's just no evidence that he was ever involved."

"Well you've certainly changed your tune."

"Anderson I had a lot of time to think, waiting at the edge of that battlefield, wondering if Xi was going to make it. I understand why you hate him. I hated him myself for a long time but you were right there's no reason to think he's the-"

The elevator doors slid away, revealing a surprising scene before us. There were a few military officers present along with two of the leaders of the resistance. One was the leader of the Paris resistance now lying on his back in a pool of his own blood. The other stood over the body, pistol in hand and wearing the same military uniform I'd seen him in when we'd first met. From the expression on General Coberg's face he was clearly shocked to see us. Or more likely to see that we were still alive.

"Oh," said Lara.


	40. Log 35

Log 35

Date: 23RD DEC 2186

Location: EARTH RESISTANCE HEADQUARTERS, LONDON, UK

Not a great place to cut off the log I realize (though it would make a great cliffhanger). Honestly I just got called away to speak to-. Well that's skipping ahead a bit. Anyway we reached the resistance base and found Coberg standing over a body.

It took both groups a little while to recover from the shock of what they were seeing but soon enough weapons were being raised on all sides. With no cover available to either faction we quickly found ourselves in a standoff. Much as I wanted to put Coberg down, at this range any firefight I started would get very bloody, very fast (and might well not favor our side even with the Justicar helping us).

"Stand down Admiral. The base is in lockdown following a major incident but rest assured the matter is in hand."

"In hand?"

"We've discovered that some individuals within the resistance were indoctrinated. Fortunately I have just executed their leader, I think the danger is over."

So he was going to try and claim that he'd caught the indoctrinated agent and that everything was OK now? I wasn't fooled, perhaps there was some way the man at Coberg's feet could have found out our plans for Harbinger but we'd been hounded by betrayal long before we linked up with the other Resistance cells. Possibly it was the realization of my own subtle indoctrination but I felt I could see more clearly now than I had in months. In that moment of clarity I dismissed any notion that the betrayals that had plagued us for so long could ever have been a string of coincidences. And there was only one man that could've been responsible for them all.

"Do the words 'red handed' mean anything to you General? There's no way that man could have been responsible for the attack in Vancouver or the murdered guard. It was you."

Coberg frowned.

"Murdered guard, Admiral? I'm afraid I've no idea what on earth you are talking about."

I was rendered speechless for a moment. It wasn't his lie that left me dumbstruck but the pathological certainty with which he delivered it.

"So now that you're in London you want to bury your past so no one sees this 'lockdown' for what it really is? Not a chance General, too many people know about everything that's happened for the rumors not to spread. Hell Lara here was present for most of it."

"The word of an alien, not to mention one who hates me hardly makes the story more convincing. But I'm surprised you would invent something like this Admiral, maybe you should be taken down to the med bay. We can try to get to the bottom of all those headaches you've been getting," he was grinning widely now, like a man who knew he held all the cards.

"How many witness do you think you can dismiss Coberg? I'm not exactly in danger of running out: Major Coats, Daniels-"

"Oh the Major backs your story? Convenient thing to claim after we lost contact with him on his scouting mission."

"What? What did you-"

"As for Daniels? Well now Private, come over here and tell the Admiral that he's mistaken about this whole 'murder' thing."

Daniels? I looked round just in time to realize that he was one of the military officers in the room. Up until now he'd kept his head down, hiding his face from sight (and I'd been focused on Coberg to take in the rest of the room anyway). He looked at me briefly, his face pale and empty of any emotion but said nothing. Then he began to walk forwards slowly, dragging himself forward with every step. Once he reached the center of the room he repeated what he'd been asked to, word for word. He didn't seem to have the slightest clue where he was at all.

"Apparently no one else reliable seems to know anything about the murder of some guard on a sub. I really think we need to take you down to the med bay."

In my shock I barely took in the General's words, clearly traitors had wormed their way into the heart of the Resistance right under my nose. Coberg and Daniels certainly but how many more? Was everyone here part of this? Fortunately the next words spoken showed that wasn't the case.

"Hang on," one of the other officers said. "Anderson never mentioned anything about a sub. And I overheard Major Coats talking about something similar a few nights ago."

"Did you? That's annoying," remarked Coberg. "Kill him."

"What? No," the officer turned his rifle to aim at the General but it was already too late. A shot caught him from behind and flung him across the room. A second shot finished him off. Both shots came from the man now moving to replace the man he had just killed, Private Daniels.

"That's a shame actually, he was an extremely competent officer," said Coberg casually.

"But at least this way we can dispense with the charade."

"So it was you all along? You're the indoctrinated agent we've been looking for all this time."

"No," Coberg snapped. "Your incessant boasting of how much stronger the Reapers are than us was always your weakness. You were so caught up in looking for someone that was indoctrinated you never stopped to think that those machines might not even be involved. That I did this of my own free will!"

"What the hell for? What was worth throwing away so many innocent lives? Power?"

"Strategy Admiral, Strategy! Throughout this campaign you've always been too weak, too soft, too afraid to take the fight to the enemy. I had to take control, to give the Resistance real leadership."

"No matter how many had to die to get you there."

"Dammit Anderson! There are millions dying every day that this war drags on. Do you really think I'm going to regret having a little extra blood on my hands in the face of all that?"

I looked at Daniels, he hadn't looked at me once since I'd arrived.

"I can understand the General turning out to be a power hungry S.O.B. by why did you join him? What are you getting out of all this?"

There was silence from Daniels, not even an attempt to reply.

"Oh I think those questions might be just a tad beyond the Private's current mental capacity," chuckled Coberg. "Like asking a Krogan to write poetry really."

I could see he was right, he wasn't just trying to avoid my gaze out of shame at this betrayal, he just didn't seem to notice me I was there. In fact he didn't even seem to be aware of what was going on around him at all.

"What have you done to him?"

"What have I done? I'm afraid you have your Reaper friends to thank for his current condition, not that he's the only one."

"Indoctrination?"

The General nodded. "Not of everyone of course, or even many people really but I noticed that a few of our soldiers were being affected."

"How did you find out?"

"I honestly didn't know anything about it. Not until I saw Daniels transmit a warning to the Reapers back in my old base in Vancouver. He's the one that alerted the Reapers to my plan to attack them with the Mako's, prompting their swift invasion of our position."

"No! He wouldn't!"

"Oh but he did Admiral, I saw it with my own eyes."

"And said nothing. To any of us."

"I wasn't really in a position to do so now, was I? What with being captured and then Daniels going MIA for weeks I obviously wasn't able to confront him on it until after we escaped the Cerberus base."

"And?"

"He denied it furiously at first, I had to really work to get the truth out of him. In fairness I don't think he was even aware what he'd done himself, not consciously at any rate. To be honest at first I considered killing him myself for ruining my plans."

"What stopped you? Not morality I assume?"

"Morality has its uses in peace time Admiral but we are at war. No what held me back is that I learned that the indoctrination made him very compliant. They seem to obey any order given to them, particularly from me but then I did always have a knack to keeping troops in line."

"They?"

"I'm hardly likely to give you their names am I Admiral? But don't worry, it really isn't too many. Most of them are like Daniels, little people the likes of us would normally step over, which of course has been useful in keeping them hidden from you. To be honest they're far from your biggest problem, it's the other indoctrination cases you should be worrying about."

"What other cases?"

"Apparently indoctrination doesn't seem to affect everyone the same way, there are some affected that I haven't been able to control," Coberg explained, the frustration at this fact clearly evident on his face.

"Daniels, why don't you talk them through the other cases involved?"

Daniels turned his gaze towards the General but for the first time he seemed hesitant.

"That's an order Private Daniels, tell them."

Still he hesitated, drawing out the moment.

"Yes sir," he replied turning to face Lara as he did so.

"Your indoctrination took a different form. I saw it in your devotion to your new crew, your new family. You've certainly not been acting as a Justicar should. The Reapers have compelled you to act selfishly."

"She would never do that, you're mistaken."

"Wasn't Karlakh meant to be keeping an eye on me? If he had been this coup would have been much harder to arrange but unfortunately she never asked him to watch me."

"What?"

"Instead she had him transferred to another Resistance base. Apparently protecting her own has become more important than following your orders Admiral."

Daniels turned to face me.

"Don't bother. I know the Reapers are trying to influence me, to wear down my resolve and convince me to surrender. Frankly I wish them luck, they're gonna need it."

Daniels turned round to face Coberg.

"Finally your-"

"That's enough Daniels, keep your weapon trained on the enemy."

Daniels nodded slowly and returned to his previous position.

"So you forced Daniels to kill the guard for you on the sub? Or did you do it yourself and force him to cover for you?"

"It was necessary."

Behind the General, Daniels empty hand started twitching uncontrollably. Hoping desperately that it was a sign that he was still fighting the conditioning I decided to play for time.

"For what? So you could get us all killed?"

"No, the Reapers only wanted you. They don't attack me, they think I'm one of them, indoctrinated."

"They think you're one of them? Wow they really did a number on you, didn't they?"

"But what about the sabotaged shuttles? That must've happened before you even found out about Daniels."

The General looked annoyed at the endless questions but I wanted to clear everything up before I made my move.

"While we were in Vancouver I learned about your plan to evacuate the base. Don't ask me how I'm getting tired of answering to you. The plan, which only failed because of the Reaper attack I might add, was to-"

"To blow us out of the sky when we tried to leave," I finished for him.

"I assume you intended just to order a 'warning shot' so that you could look as surprised as anyone when my shuttle's kinetic barriers failed and I was killed. Along with all the perfectly innocent civilians I'd have been evacuating but hey, they're just casualties of war right?"

"I don't have to stand here justifying myself to you of all people, shoot them."

"Wait!" I called out.

"There just one more thing I want to know before the shooting starts."

"The shooting starts? Don't imagine you have a chance here Anderson, your shields were destroyed in the battle and your Asari can barely lift a gun right now."

"Still, final request?"

"What is it?"

"How did you know about our plans today? We specifically kept the details secret from you and we didn't involve Daniels either."

Unexpectedly the General grinned widely at this.

"Oh thank you for reminding me about that, I'd almost forgotten to tell you my best source of information. The one that kept me five steps ahead of you the whole time. Anderson, I read your book."

"The journal? How?"

"Daniels managed to get hold of the datapad and install a virus onto the system. It transferred a copy of each log you wrote directly to me. While you were agonizing over the best moment to confront me I was finessing my statement so to speak."

It's painful to write those words even now. I wasn't the traitor, I didn't warn Harbinger that we were coming but I might as well have done. Through sheer carelessness I handed Coberg everything he needed to plan a coup. And yeah I can try to claim that I couldn't have known. I can tell myself that I took every possible precaution, except for the obvious precaution. Not writing it down in the first place.

But here I am again, writing out yet another passage. I can't deny it any longer, it has become an obsession. Whatever the original purpose of this journal was, whether to record this piece of history or as a warning to the next cycle is now irrelevant. Its purpose now is to help keep me sane. Reading through the entries reminds me of who I am, who I was before the Reapers tried to meddle with my mind. It helps me to remember my victories in this war and doesn't allow me to forget the defeats. I wonder if when I look back on this chapter I'll see it as a victory or a defeat.

"So you read about our plan and then warned Harbinger. That explains why our fallback position wasn't targeted, I didn't write about it so the Reapers never knew of its existence. Guess that's also why our weapon wasn't effective either, you gave the Reapers a chance to prepare a defense. You really are a traitor."

"They would have found a defense without my help, the Reapers are smarter than even your best scientists. Luckily you can't out think brute force or firepower."

"But why not just have Daniels shoot me from the beginning? He must have had dozens of opportunities."

"Unfortunately it's taken time for the indoctrination to overcome some of his more... Deeply ingrained ideals."

"They're called morals General," I replied and dropped my gun.

"Let's see if they've really stopped functioning, shall we?"

The General sighed.

"Did you really think I would fall for that one so easily? Fortunately Carlson here never really had those kinds of morals to begin with."

He smiled and turned to the other guard he had left in the room.

"Execute them, Anderson first."

The guard turned to face me and raised his rifle to head height. There was no where for me to go, my pistol was still on the floor where I'd dropped it. The sound of single shot echoed throughout the chamber.

And then another and another shot as Daniels kept firing every few seconds. His face was pale as death as he swung from side to side, shooting at everything. In his right hand his pistol continued to fire seemingly regardless of where the gun was pointed (half the shots he fired went nowhere). His left hand wrestled with his right attempting to drag the weapon in the direction of a target. Over and over I heard him repeat the last order Coberg had given him 'keep your weapon trained on the enemy.'

The other guard went down with the first shot. He tried to get up again but a quick boot to the head put him out of the fight. Coberg ducked low and tried to get out of there, shouting for more guards. He would have done better to stay quiet. The noise seemed to alert Daniels to his presence. The General was hit twice in the torso and went down.

Now Daniels turned towards us, still having difficulty controlling his right arm.

"Daniels it's alright, you've done it," I called out.

He looked directly at me for the first time and I saw on his face all the sneering hatred and disgust the Reapers felt for humanity.

"Why do you hate us so much?" I muttered almost to myself.

"Your people have a story about a man named Icarus, who flew too close to the sun," replied Daniels though the voice was not his own.

"We stop races like yours from flying too high, a service done to protect organic life from itself. If you were given such a task for millennia, you too would come to hate the creatures that you were forced to kill."

For a moment the gun started to be lowered as he pointed it at me. Then a look of absolute, abject hopelessness replaced the sneer on Daniels' face. For a moment I saw the boy I had found in the ruins of Vancouver, full of fear and thinking that the world was about to end.

"Let me help you."

He shook his head sadly.

"Not this time Admiral, I'm sorry."

He raised his gun again, straight up until it was pointing under his chin. But his right arm still wouldn't stop firing.

I ran to his side and caught him as he fell but he was already gone. Yet another life taken from me by the war. Another face that would haunt my dreams. Already I know that I'll see that image every day I have left and remember every detail. The way he closed his eyes just before the end, the peace on his face as, in that final moment, he accepted his fate.

Everything he could have been, could have done with his life destroyed in a single moment. But I could not, would not allow myself to regret his decision. To do so would be an insult to his memory, a sneer to everything that he had been in his life, both good and bad. Instead I did what I always do when a fellow soldier falls. Offer a silent prayer of gratitude for his bravery, an acknowledgment of the sacrifice he made. And then as always, I moved on to deal with the man responsible.

By the time I reached Coberg he was lying on the ground, badly injured but still alive. A Resistance member was kneeling over him about to apply a batch of Medi gel that would save his life. I'm ashamed to admit it but I gripped her arm and held her back.

"No, leave him be," I said, hating myself for the words.

"Sir?"

"We lost a lot of good people today. We're certainly not wasting our miracle cure on him. Do your best to patch him up without it."

Even after everything he'd done I could still feel the shock of my two comrades.

"Anderson," Lara didn't know where to begin. "His wounds are severe, I don't know if he'll survive without this."

"I know. This stuff is like a miracle, we've all seen it save the lives of those we care about," I said indicating the Medi gel dispenser.

"Do you really want to risk the chance that one day you could be standing over one of your injured crew knowing you chose this traitor over them?"

Lara scowled.

"Are you trying to manipulate me using the Reaper indoc- Using what Daniels talked about? It won't work Anderson, I'm a Justicar, we have a duty to do what's right."

"I'm glad to hear you're still fighting it Lara. But I'm serious, I've shown mercy in the past and it's backfired badly. I even let Kai Leng escape once, I could have stopped him if I'd wanted to but I wasn't ready to consider that option. And just a few days ago Leng almost killed Shepard, almost ended any hope that any of us might survive."

"Anderson, I-" Lara paused. "We'll do what we can for him for now."

"Make sure you find someone to help Xi Chan as well."

They left me alone with my guilt. In truth I hadn't really explained the main reason I'd stopped them from helping the General. It was out of fear of what was coming next or at least what I suspected was coming. When I saw the Citadel floating above London, like an instinct I knew that the end was fast approaching. One call from Shepard quickly confirmed my suspicions.

He'd just come from a mission, an all-out assault on Cerberus' main headquarters in fact. He'd gone in to recover the data Kai Leng stole during the Thessia mission. The information was about the Catalyst, the final piece of the puzzle needed to complete the long prayed for superweapon that might end the war. And apparently that missing piece is the Citadel.

It seemed almost unbelievable at first but in a strange way it did make an odd sort of sense. The Citadel was built by the Reapers, it was the single greatest feat of technology they (or to my knowledge anyone) had ever built. Supposedly one of the cycles that had revised the superweapon's design had decided to incorporate this advanced technology into the plans.

Unfortunately Cerberus had left us a parting gift while their organization was in its death throes. They had transmitted this information they had on the superweapon to the Reapers. Most likely it was due to being indoctrinated, though from what I'd heard of the Illusive Man, perhaps it was just a final act of revenge. I don't think he's the sort of man who accepts losing easily.

Regardless of the reason the result was the same, the Reapers seized the Citadel and brought it here to protect it. Earth was certainly one of their most well secured planets and London itself had been turned into a fortress (though it still disturbs me that the defenses had been built before Cerberus warned the Reapers about the Crucible).

Now that it was here, there would be no other choice and no reason to delay any longer. The fleets would have to come to Earth and a last, desperate attempt to assemble the weapon would be made. And so while the rest of the Galaxy fretted about the slim odds of success we celebrated our imminent rescue and prepared for battle. I'm not sure how much help we can be from here but I know I can count on everyone in the Resistance to do whatever it took to liberate Earth (okay technically I couldn't count on the indoctrinated Resistance members but thankfully they'd given themselves away following Coberg's fall. All we can hope is that we got them all).

But how does any of this relate back to what I did to the General? Well the biggest battle any of us are ever likely to see is about to come to pass. Dr Serov predicted that I would die before the end of the war and I fear he's right. And what then? What if I die tomorrow, along with countless others?

Or to put it another way: Udina is dead, Arcturus station destroyed and the Alliance Parliament along with it and almost every politician on Earth has been killed. How many would have to fall in this next battle to leave Humanity without a leader. Myself, Admiral Hackett and Shepard too I would think, a small handful of other Admirals that will be traveling with the fleet as well. Not really very many of us left now, I fear a future where we die in battle and the General reasserts himself.

Being imprisoned and accused of being indoctrinated would be a setback for him but not necessarily a permanent one. With his influence and without any other real leadership he could still achieve his dream of taking control. The thought of him leading Humanity in its final days make me shiver. But does that justify condemning him? Is it something I can live with?

If I've learned one thing from all this, it is that their can be no turning back from this. The soldier I once was, is dead. That man would have despised the action I took today and from his point of view he would have been right. It was an immoral act, letting a prisoner die for fear of what might one day come to pass. A soldier would have accepted the risk and been ready to deal with it if possible, willing to face the consequences if he failed (though of course he never really believed he'd ever fail).

I took on this task of defending Earth to get away from the politics but it followed me here. After everything I have learned as a leader, I cannot close my eyes or return to the naivety of my youth. The knowledge I have gained brings me no joy, I still despise the actions I am forced to take but after all that's happened I can be no other way.


	41. Log 36

Log 36

Date: 24TH DEC 2186

Location: TEMPORARY FORWARD OPERATING BASE, LONDON, UK

One way or another this will probably be the last entry I make in this journal. We're preparing for the final push, if we succeed then the war will be over. So I don't plan on retreating or falling back this time. This time we push forward until we win or we die.

After Shepard called yesterday we spent the rest of the day rounding up the rest of Coberg's supporters. It wasn't all that difficult in the end. The General had helpfully made a series of rapid promotions just after we left. Ironic that he should be the one best suited to clearing out our ranks but you set a thief to catch a thief I guess. We rounded them up quickly enough. I was more concerned with how we would justify the arrests but I was worrying needlessly. Without Coberg the indoctrinated agents became erratic, either going berserk or withdrawing from the world entirely like lifeless husks.

As for the General himself? I was informed that he died from his wounds around midnight. I felt ashamed at the news despite having suspected that's how it would end. I understand and even accept the reasons for my decision. But living with the decision? Well maybe it's too early to say. I think it will come back to haunt me but the price seems reasonable given the stakes.

I didn't sleep at all that night. I intended to (you can't win wars if you're half asleep afterall) but there was always just one more meeting, one last preparation to make. There are several Resistance cells around the globe that weren't able to make the journey to London. We're coordinating plans for them to act on once the fighting begins. Its doubtful they'll be able to help but the Reapers will be distracted during the battle which gives them an opportunity. They've planned out some ambitious raids and rescue attempts, a final effort to save as many lives as possible.

When dawn broke I was called down from my office. It was Coats, freshly returned from a scouting mission the General had sent him on to get him out of the way. From the look on his face I could tell I was about to receive some unpleasant news.

"What is it Major?"

"I'm sorry Admiral but the Citadel arms have closed."

I swore and raced outside to see for myself. Sure enough I could see the Citadel clearly now in the daylight and the arms were shut enclosing the whole station within.

"We have to find a way to get in, the Crucible won't be able to dock unless we do."

"Sir, the outer shell of the Citadel, it's impregnable."

"That might not necessarily be true," a familiar voice called out from behind me.

"Xi Chan," I shouted amazed to see the little Salarian standing again.

"You're a sight for sore eyes. What the hell are you doing out of bed?"

"Well I thought I was missing out on all the excitement," he said, giving one of his most endearing before becoming serious again.

"Can you see that light just below the Citadel?"

I had to squint, it was very faint in the light of the new dawn but I could just about make out what he was talking about.

"What about it?"

"It seems to be coming from a large structure built by the Reapers. To be honest we never paid it much attention until they parked the Citadel directly overhead."

"Any idea what it does?"

"Well I took a look at the data from our scans of the thing and couldn't make any sense of it. But logically I think it's likely that the beam somehow allows transport to and from the Citadel."

"Are you certain?"

"I can't be sure but it does tally with what the scouts have described. They saw the Reapers hauling cargo over to the beam, presumably for transport."

"What sort of cargo?"

"People," Xi replied bleakly.

I ordered Coats to report this development to Admiral Hackett. As he left we stood in contemplative silence for a time, just staring out at the massive space station hanging over the city.

"I'm sorry about what happened at the battle Admiral," Xi Chan said at last, breaking the silence.

"It wasn't your fault the plan failed. I'm sure the Reapers adapted to it the minute Coberg warned them it was coming."

"Well... It hasn't failed completely. Not yet at any rate."

I took a sideways look at him.

"What are you saying?"

"Only that I put all sort of things into that transmission. Big obvious stuff that would do a lot of damage quickly but lots of Trojans and Frankenstein virus's."

"A Frankenstein virus?"

"It's just something that builds itself out of benevolent code that's already on the host computer, very hard to detect."

"Are you saying Harbinger might still be affected?"

He looked up at me.

"I don't know anything for certain but there's still a chance it could flare up at a critical moment. I hope so, it would mean all those people didn't die for nothing."

"You're quite a remarkable man Xi Chan but you should still be back in bed."

"If you say so Admiral," he turned to leave.

"Actually, there is one more thing before you go. In case this doesn't go according to plan,"

"It will."

I shook my head.

"You and I know better than most how badly things could end tonight. If anything happens to me in this next battle, I want you to lead the Resistance in my place."

He turned around to face me, the shock evident on his face.

"But I always assumed Lara or the Major-"

"They'll be with me in the coming battle. Besides I always thought you were the right choice."

"Me?"

"You're intelligent, compassionate and resourceful. I couldn't have gotten half as far as I did without your help."

"Thank you sir. From what I've heard this is usually about the time humans say 'it's been an honor to serve with you'. And it has been an honor, I'm more proud of being part of this Resistance than of anything I've ever done."

I watched him head back to the sick bay while Lara approached from the other direction.

"I heard what you said. Making preparations in case what Daniels told us was true?"

"I think we both know it was."

"What do we do?"

I pointed up at the Citadel.

"I don't know about you but that thing up there decided my plans for me. I'll help them to deploy the Crucible while I'm still able."

"And after that?"

"Honestly I don't know, can't even assume there will be an 'after that'."

"Do you think... Do you think the effect might fade? If the Reapers are destroyed, I mean."

"Again, I just don't know the answer to that Lara. In my experience it's never quite that simple. But who knows? Maybe there is a way back."

"I will fight with you one more time Admiral. We'll make the Reapers remember the Resistance."

"Not to mention the Justicar," I replied.

To be honest I've thought a lot about Daniels final words. Maybe it was always foolish to think we'd be able to escape indoctrination entirely. We're all trapped on this world, with our metal overlords flying overhead broadcasting signals to make us turn on each other or submit. Well I'm setting personal concerns aside now. The hopeless situation, the difficulties we'll come up against even my own life, they're all irrelevant now. Tonight if we stop, hesitate or try to fall back everyone dies.

In many ways I find it liberating to cast of these concerns. Its a refreshing break from stressed months of worrying about every tiny detail. Now only one thing matters and any and all options to achieve it are on the table. The one and only thing I regret is Kahlee. I promised her a life on Earth with me after the war. Now the war might be at an end but I'm not sure if Earth, or I am in any fit state for what comes after. When I close my eyes I can see paradise, a small cottage somewhere sunny with her by my side. But that dream feels very distant from the ruined streets of London and I hardly feel worthy of it.

I'm looking out at those ruins right now. It's gotten dark now but I can still just about recognize the area. I grew up not far from here in fact I think I even walked down the street below me several times as a young man. So strange that we should choose to liberate this part of the city first.

Oh yes, I haven't mentioned liberating the city yet. To be honest it's less grand then it sounds. We hold a scrap of territory no more than a few dozen yards across but for the time being we're holding the Reapers at bay. It all started after Major Coats contacted Hackett about the Citadel beam. The decision was quickly taken to send reinforcements from the fleet to the surface, so we seized this small area to serve as a rallying point. From here we plan to make at all out assault on the beam and use it to get aboard the Citadel. If we succeed we can try to open the Citadel arms from within and end this nightmare. As expected the task is likely to be damn near impossible. The Reapers know about the Resistance now and will use everything they can spare to stop us from reaching that beam, hell there's even a Reaper Destroyer parked right in front of it. The rest of the fleet is engaging the Reapers en masse, which is the only reason they haven't crushed us yet.

Still we have a plan for ending the war which is far more than we've ever really had up to this point. We have a lot of reinforcements (the troops sent down to join us have been drawn from every race imaginable) although less than we'd hoped for. And last but by no means least Commander Shepard is back here on Earth.

He's downstairs right now, making some last minute preparations before we begin our attack. It's because of him that we've received so much help for this plan. While we've been fighting to hold our own down here he united the galaxy and brought every species in it to this one fight. Not of course to say that he's perfect, we did have to pull his boots out of the fire earlier this evening. I have to say I felt a lot of pride when I introduced him to Major Coats and the rest of the Resistance. It's only a shame that Lara and Xi were too busy to meet him as well.

The battle lines are set now and all the preparations I can do are done. I'm in the Command Center sitting in on a discussion about strategy but my concentration isn't entirely there, afterall at this point strategy is more or less irrelevant. Instead I found myself staring out at the Citadel and the beam, wondering why the Reapers had ever built it. Finally I began to see daylight (figuratively not literally), the Citadel is an egg. Or a womb or a Reaper shipyard if you prefer to call it that. Every aspect of its design suddenly made sense. The Keepers serving as a workforce to build the new Reaper. The arms that could close around the new 'embryo' and keep it safe until it was finished at which point the arms would open and a brand new Reaper would fly out. And the beam, a means of transporting the raw materials needed without risking anything as big as a ship getting inside. Maybe that explains the Reapers actions, the need to reproduce is at least an idea I can understand if not accept given the cost. It's clearer to me than the words of Daniels or Harbinger. If the Reapers serve some great galactic purpose I'm sure I'll never learn what it is.

But I'm letting myself get distracted with that and Shepard's just entered the room. There's one more thing I feel the need to say before I march into battle. I once trained under a Turian drill sergeant as part of a cross-species training exercise. That bastard pushed me past limits I didn't even know I had, humbled me too on more than one occasion. But there is one thing he said that really stayed with me. 'Every moment in our lives, good and bad comes together to make the man we are today. I suggest you wait to see how my training helps you before you complain'.

Not quite poetry but completely true and not just about my own life. We stand at a historic moment in history, the day the Cycle is broken having lasted millions of years. Every moment in history, the good, the bad, even the horrific came together to give us this one chance. I can't even begin to guess how many choices brought us to this moment but every one of them mattered. And to all those soldiers, on all those battlefields stretching back before this Cycle even began who contributed in some way, knowingly or not to this day I express my unreserved gratitude. I can only pray that my small contribution brought life and hope to those around me.

Now if you'll excuse me, we have a war to win.

End of Log

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Author's Note: Actually Anderson it's not quite the end but you can expect the last few bits and pieces to be uploaded by the end of this extended weekend.

I'd like to take a moment at this point to thank everyone who's subscribed, favorited, posted a review or just simply read this novel, I really hope you've enjoyed it as much as I did writing it. It's been a rollercoaster writing this (my first proper novel) and I've done my best to follow the structure and tone of the Mass Effect 3 game wherever possible. My favorite scene will always be writing the interaction between Sheppard and his squad as they relaxed in Flux with Anderson.

Thanks Again.

Pyro


	42. Epilogue

Epilogue

This is Admiral Steven Hackett, 5th Fleet Alliance. It has been three months now since the Reapers were defeated and rebuilding efforts have begun. The scale of the destruction caused by the war has been catastrophic, the death toll incalculable. Whole cities have been destroyed and our colonies have been decimated. Of all homeworlds of the spacefaring species in the galaxy only Sur'kesh and Rannoch have been left largely untouched. As yet we can't even begin guess how long the reconstruction will take.

The days have been tough, harder for some than the actual war. In the midst of all this hardship, I wanted to do something to remind the galaxy of the historic victory we have achieved. To that end I'm putting this journal on display in our war memorial. When people visit the grounded SSV Normandy and look at the wall of names of all those who died while serving aboard her, they'll also be able to read the words of her former captain.

For the record Admiral Anderson, alongside Commander Shepard succeeded in their mission to take down that Destroyer and clear a path to the beam. Once that objective was completed, our ground forces and the remainder of the Resistance made a final charge on the beam itself. In response Harbinger descended from the battle in orbit and reached the beam just as they began their final run. The units faced crippling losses in that charge, 95% of the force were killed, with a handful retreating and only two individuals reaching the target, Anderson and Shepard.

It should be noted that their ability to get through was aided but Harbinger's abrupt departure when the task of the defending the beam wasn't yet complete. We can only speculate why this occurred but I like to think that Mr. Chan's virus might have been responsible. I've come to know the Salarian very well as we coordinate with what remains of the Resistance on our reconstruction efforts. He made a full recovery from his injuries and I've come to greatly appreciate and rely on his assistance.

Unfortunately we don't know for certain what occurred once Anderson got aboard the Citadel. We know that the Citadel arms were opened which allowed us to dock the Crucible and that eventually the weapon did fire destroying the Reapers. There are no eye witnesses left who can report on any of the events after Anderson was seen entering the beam. When we arrived on the scene we discovered the body of Admiral Anderson. We know he died due to blood loss from a gunshot wound but not who did it.

Our best guess lies in the other body we found, that of Cerberus' leader known as the Illusive Man. Ironic that a man that for so long seemed to be nowhere at all should eventually turn up where he was least expected. He died from a single shot to the head that looks to be self inflicted. The only other person discovered was Commander Shepard himself, unconscious and badly injured but still alive. He's been in a coma ever since the incident but perhaps if he ever wakes up we will learn more about Anderson's final moments.

For now all I can do is reiterate that Admiral David Anderson was a hero. His journal speaks for itself of the incredible determination and sacrifice he was prepared to live with in order to protect others. Nothing that I can say can possibly add anything more to his long and distinguished career. Instead I will focus on the lives he affected as head of the Earth Resistance.

As I have already mentioned Xi Chan is actively taking a leading role in rebuilding Earth's cities beginning with Anderson's hometown of London. He has taken up the mantle of head of the Resistance as the Admiral suggested and under his leadership it is a peacekeeping and administrative force. Major Coats (there's talk of a promotion to General) also survived and assists Xi Chan in his new role.

Regrettably Lara T'Ren was badly affected and unable to fight during the battle when one of her original crew, a young Asari named Benevola, was killed in the fighting. Due to the combination of indoctrination and grief, Miss T'Ren has not been able to recover from this trauma. She is currently being held in an emergency care center in London specifically set up for dealing with the effects of long term indoctrination. From what I hear Siri, another member of her crew acts as a full time carer. I can only hope that with time she and others like her will be able to heal.

Karlakh, another member of Miss T'Ren's crew reportedly left the Sol system in a salvaged ship. Apparently he told friends and colleagues that he intended to travel into Batarian space and rescue any surviving Drell still enslaved by the regime and then locate a world on which they can settle. My best wishes go with him but also my concerns. We haven't had any word from Batarian space since it was first occupied by the Reapers. As I understand it, the young lady referenced in this journal as Sarah Smith chose to go with him.

Finally we have received word from the remains of the Vancouver cell of the Resistance (all those that did not travel to London). Colonel Travis survived the war, supported considerably by a young, recently made captain by the name of William Stevenson. They finally found William's mother had been captured by the same Reaper Processor ship that they had disabled earlier in the year. She and 300 other prisoners were rescued in a raid made while most of the Reaper forces were distracted with the battle over London. Helping to plan that attack was one of Admiral Anderson's final acts.

Those are just a small selection of all the lives the Admiral saved by choosing to remain behind on Earth. Simply put he gave us hope and a new generation to lead us into the future. Speaking personally I can only say this: Goodbye, old friend.


	43. Addendum 1

Addendum 1 - Letter to Kahlee Sanders

There is so much I want to say to you that I don't know where to begin. My single greatest regret will always be that I wasted so much time that would could have spent together. I dream sometimes of building a life with you. On Earth, near London maybe; I could build us a house on the bank of the Thames, just beyond the city limits.

If I die in this war and I suspect I will before its all over I want to apologize. Even now I feel selfish to be drawing you in all the while knowing that I risk hurting you if everything I fear comes to pass. Nevertheless I want you to know I never gave up on that dream however dark things got. The thought of a life after the war is what has helped me survive it for so long.

Wherever I end up know that you will always be in my thoughts.

With love

David Anderson


	44. Addendum 2

Addendum 2 - Letter to Jason Anderson

You are the most important person in my life. Despite my absences over the years I hope you understand that everything I have done in my life since the moment you were born has been for you. I wanted to give you a safe and peaceful galaxy and in that I appear to have failed. I find myself wondering often if it would not have been better to spend less time working and more time with you, the end result seems to be the same.

I take no credit for the incredible man that you have grown up to be. Everything you have accomplished was achieved by you and you alone. My pride in you is absolute as is my love for you. I would ask only one thing of you now: stay safe out there. I can bare anything in this war except news that you have been hurt.

Lots of love

Dad


	45. Addendum 3

Addendum 3 - Letter to John Shepard

What can I say to you now after everything you've accomplished? When we began this journey I was still your superior officer and your mentor but you have surpassed me in every possible way. Regardless of how this war ends there are already no words that can express the gratitude owed to you by me and the entire galaxy.

Nevertheless there are still two final things I will say to you. Firstly is that I hope you get a chance to settle down after the war. Many stories feature noble heroes who die to save everyone else but you deserve more than that. I wish you every happiness. And secondly in recognition of something ridiculously long overdue I, Admiral Anderson acting with the authority granted to me by the Alliance Parliament hereby promote you to the rank of Captain upon receipt of this letter. And no better candidate have I ever known for the job.

My everlasting respect

Admiral Anderson

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Ok now we have reached the end - I hope you all enjoyed it.

Just wanted to take this opportunity to address a few points before I stop.

\- For those that are wondering this book adopts a fairly standard paragon Sheppard, one that largely maximizes war assets except for in a few cases where he refuses to do so for sentimental reasons (actually curing the genophage, bringing Ashley & Dr. Chakwas onto the Normandy and so on)

\- Some may be wondering why the book doesn't go into any great detail about what happened on the Citadel or any other part of the final climatic battle. There were two reasons for this, the first being that as this was being written as if it were an actual journal it is hard to explain why Anderson would stop midbattle to jot down a few notes. The second is that I felt that surviving long enough for Sheppard's reinforcements to arrive was the point of Anderson's story in ME3. He didn't die the moment they arrived but it was when it stopped being solely his story.

\- In one of the later chapters I had Harbinger openly mock the alliance between the Quarians and the Geth, which is just one issue but it does reflect my personal feelings about the infamous ending to ME3. I don't hate the concept, the ingredients were all there if only they had taken more time and care to write the scene properly and fully explore and explain the concepts they were dealing with. I like the idea that viewed from the perspective of an entity millions of years old, a month old alliance isn't very significant. Even the overall motivation of the Reapers themselves isn't too damning for me although I wish they had broadened the scope of their ideas. Instead of focusing on the dangers of synthetics it should have dealt with the idea that all progress eventually leads to the creation of weapons that can devastate everything. In real life we face threats from nuclear war and climate change which might make you wonder if it would be better for the planet had "Reapers" swept in and removed the humans before we learned to split the atom.

\- Question has been raised about why Reapers would even bother to watch out for submarines or ships trying to travel around. This was largely done to depict the Reapers trying to restrict movement as a means of controlling the population. America seemed useful for this as it is quite difficult to navigate round by sea leaving a few easily guarded choke points.

\- Question has been raised about why Harbinger sometimes seemed to expect Anderson to simply surrender. The idea here was that Harbinger was placing him in increasingly hopeless situations to accelerate the process of his indoctrination (which was based on achieving total despair)

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P.S.

There may be a sidequel (a sequel that runs concurrent to the first one) based on Miranda Lawson's own war experience but it is currently in the very early stages.

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P.P.S

Please review!


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